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13th Stage
Japanese GTO vs. American GTO

It had only been six hours worth of testing her coupe, but Nagase was satisfied by the result. The night was somehow her favourite time to take her coupe out for a run through the Shuto Highway, considering that the roads would be much emptier than being packed with slow-moving vehicles that would hog the lanes. Minoru had gone ahead towards Wangan Inbound; the same route where she was heading to. As her GTO hit the Daikatai, heading towards Wangan Inbound, green eyes kept glancing at the rear view mirror, keeping a watch that no one was there to initiate a battle against her. She was not that ready for a race, considering that she had just tuned the turbo boost slightly, and was not sure how would it affect on the acceleration, and handling.

“No one,” she thought before a sigh of relief left her mouth. “Hope this keeps up.”

However, just after her coupe entered the Wangan Straight, she spotted a foreign vehicle; a black Pontiac. Nagase rarely sees coupes of that brand, but thanks to her recent research, she managed to know what the model was.

“Pontiac GTO,” she thought. “Why the heck does that car have the same name as my Mitsubishi?”

She geared up to 3rd, at 150kmh. The twin exhausts from the coupe provided a sudden thrust, as it lunged forward, past the black coupe that was on the main road itself. She was not interested with challenging to a battle, but somewhere within her, Nagase knew, her blood was screaming to accept it.

Caleb had taken notice of the Japanese GTO, especially with its aftermarket GT rear spoiler, though he was actually in the rush to meet up with Darius. The V8 muscle car of his had just been repaired after the incident against the blasted Toyota Chaser that met a pathetic end. However, being a member of Da Pimpz, he did not seem to care about money; there would always be a way, be it a loan, or just stealing from other people. He pressured the gas pedal, just enough to tail the Mitsubishi. In a rather unexpected manner, he high-beamed towards the said vehicle, most obviously requesting for a battle. Caleb wanted to try how it would be initiating a race, the local way.

Nagase had taken notice of that the American vehicle had been doing. She wanted to decline the challenge, but the urge was just thrilling. The butch kept silent, though her left hand grasped onto the gear knob. Green eyes gazed at the road ahead; her left hand moved away, towards the steering wheel. She bit her lip soon after; her voice came through.

“Let’s hit it!”

With a quick pull of the gear knob to 4th, she floored the gas pedal. The deep hum of the V6 under the bonnet responded with a growl while the twin-turbochargers raged with a high pitched whine. Tyres squealed at the sudden thrust of acceleration as the Mitsubishi increased the gap from the Pontiac. 650bhp was by far, ferocious for her standard, but from the looks of it; the heavy mass of the coupe had to be taken notice of. Traffic was scarce ahead, hence she could take advantage of speed, since the estimated speed the GTO of hers was capable of hitting was 350kmh, a remarkable feat from a V6 engine. However, she had to consider the Pontiac’s abilities as well, though what she knew most was just the 5700cc V8 engine that came from a Chevrolet Corvette. That engine had a lot of potential; enough to get Nagase keep tabs on the coupe behind her.

The bald man was actually amused that the Japanese car in front of him had blasted ahead, as if for a quick getaway from his muscle car. However, with a V8 engine, together with a supercharger that made a total of 640bhp, he knew that it would be a close match. If power was not to his advantage, at least his balanced gearbox could do the trick. The first gear ran from 0 to 100kmh, while the remaining 5 gears, each taking 50kmh, hitting an estimated top speed of 350kmh. That was what made Caleb smile in a rather warped manner. He pumped the gear knob to 4th, before flooring the gas pedal. The jet-sounding whine from the supercharger made him all excited about this particular race as he caught up with the Japanese GTO.

“Let’s see which GTO is better; the one from America, or the one from Japan?” the bald man muttered under his breath.

Green eyes glanced at the rear view mirror. As expected, the muscle car was able to catch up with its LS1 engine. However, they did not stop her from gearing to 5th, hitting 270kmh this time round. A truck was in the way from the lane she was using. She turned hard to the next lane. The new suspensions the GTO had responded swiftly; there was no hint of oversteer nor understeer. It felt neutral. However, praising at the changes on her GTO was not the main issue now. It was the battle she had against the Pontiac. She glanced at the rear view mirror; the coupe was not in sight. The growl of the V8 was heard. Green eyes turned to the direction of the source. The muscle car had overtaken her using the far left lane; the opposite where Nagase had went to evade the truck cab. A blast from the exhaust pipe was seen from the American machine before it began to increase speed, getting away from her.

“Damn, that coupe sure is fast,” thought the butch. “But I’ll not give in to that fact!”

Still in the same gear, in a risky move, she swerved her coupe towards the rear of the Pontiac, tailgating to gain speed. 300kmh was seen on the speedometer. She glanced at the surroundings; they had long crossed the bridge, and now barreling through the tunnel, where she would expect some left corners- brake lights lit up on the Pontiac. Nagase floored on the brakes, geared down to 4th before turning to the lane on the right. The muscle car did the same, but through the emergency lane before turning back usual path. A minivan had broken down at that particular lane, and Caleb was not paying much attention to where he was driving; he was very much irritated by the tailgating Mitsubishi. Black eyes glared at the silver car, as if he was swearing at it. Never had he known the driver of the Japanese GTO had the cheek to tailgate his muscle car that close; he hated it if he had to ruin the look of his vehicle again.

In 5th gear the V8 engine growled, as the revs kept on rising due to the supercharger. By the time his coupe hit 275kmh; Caleb had overtaken the blasted Mitsubishi, and went on increasing the gap again before gearing up to 6th at 300kmh. From then on, the Pontiac simply kept going faster, to the point Nagase could barely make out the rear lights of the said car. Green eyes narrowed. The speed loss earlier on had her in a disadvantage. But she knew, she had a trump card just within her reach. The only issue was, should she use it, there would a high chance that the components in the engine would suffer a case of shorter lifespan. The afterburner was the said trump card. All she needed to do was just pull the switch to activate it. She glanced at the afterburner switch. It was tempting. She shook her head, deciding to go against that plan.

Pumping the gear knob to 5th, she floored the gas pedal, slipstreaming any vehicle that was in her way before switching lanes to slipstream another vehicle. It was a rather crude way of catching up, but at least it would help slightly on gaining speed. The Pontiac was seen again, but was still at the far left lane. Her eyes glanced at the speedometer again; 315kmh, just a few more before it was time to hit 6th gear. She switched lanes again, to the point she found herself tailgating the muscle car, though it was still leaving a rather big gap in between them. The rev counter hit the redline. Nagase lifted a smile on her face as she kicked the clutch pedal, shoved the gear knob to 6th, then re-engaging the clutch. 320kmh was read on the speedometer. The engine no longer hummed and growled like it used to. It had turned into a world of rage and terror. The twin-turbo was working at its peak, utilizing every single aspect of what it could give to the butch.

The rear lights of the American GTO got bigger, to the point it was close enough for the brunette to switch lanes, the one next to the Pontiac. Caleb swore under his breath as he hit the top part of the steering wheel in frustration. Never had he seen such a persistent adversary, not to mention that their cars had the same model name. A gentle left corner was next. The bald man turned hard, knowing that his coupe lacked the handling to match the speed. The rear wagged outwards slightly, but the speed lost was minimal. Nagase had a different experience. During the turn in, the Mitsubishi understeered for a moment before the advantage of the 4-wheel drive system allowed the coupe to grip throughout the corner, but the speed lost was more, in fact about 15kmh slower than the Pontiac. That meant the woman had to build up speed once again.

The only problem was… the left corner did not end there. Instead, it happened to be a very wide left turn which meant that Nagase had to average out on the turns, and try to minimize the speed loss throughout. Green eyes had to constantly glance at the speedometer while looking out for other vehicles that may come in the way. She took the right most lane; not a vehicle seemed to be in this particular path. Though it may be the longest route to clear the corner, it may also be the advantage once leaving the corner, considering the higher exit speed. She feathered the gas pedal, finding the right speed to deal with the turn. Tyres gripped onto the road like glue as a constant speed was found. However, she had realized that should she make a single mistake, she would either lose the battle, or worse, crash, considering how close the barrier was.

Tyres squealing soon took her attention. Green eyes turned to look at the source. The Pontiac’s rear was slipping. The aftermarket rear spoiler it had was not working; it was meant for cosmetic purposes. Caleb countersteered in order to regain control of his muscle car. However, since the front tyres the American GTO had more grip, the coupe soon slingshot towards the other direction, careening exactly where Nagase was heading towards. The butch swore under her breath as she hit the brakes, and turned the wheel deeper to the left. Front tyres of the Japanese GTO reacted quickly, but it had understeered for a short moment, hence the delay in turning. The front of the Mitsubishi escaped the oncoming American coupe, but the rear was not out yet. Taking a big risk, the woman turned the steering wheel all the way to the right, to the point it could no longer turn. The sudden change of direction forced the rear of the GTO to snap out from its grip, now into a quick spinout. She pulled the handbrake to cease the spinning, but it took moments longer before it finally did so.

The Pontiac went head on into the outside barriers of the highway, literally revealing most of the engine under the hood. Fortunately, the damage done to the coupe had killed the engine earlier on, preventing any danger from a probable explosion. The Japanese got out of her Mitsubishi, wanting to help the driver of the muscle car out. But hesitation kicked in. It was as if something had told her not to do so. Green eyes gazed at the wreck, only to see the driver door opening, and a bald man emerging from it. Nagase never uttered a word. Instead, she shifted her GTO back into first gear, and went on, acting as if nothing had occurred.

Caleb, now shaken by what had happened, stumbled to the ground with blood streaming down from his forehead. He did not know what had happened back then. All he knew that he had yanked the handbrake slightly, just to correct the direction of the Pontiac, and without warning, it began to lose control. His hands trembled, while grasping his cellphone. Dialing the number that would link him to Darius, he spoke in a rather uneasy manner, which somehow riled the owner of the Audi in someway.

“Darius, I’m out. Crashed just halfway through Wangan Inbound after going against the Mitsubishi GTO VR-4 I spotted hours earlier. You deal with it, and the Tommykaira. I’ll call the tow truck, and do something about Brian’s R34.”

With that, he ended his call, just before the battery of his cellphone went flat. Damn it, he thought as she tossed the flat cellphone into the wreckage of his Pontiac GTO.

“Looks like another loan,” he thought, before realising the debt he would be in. “Oh boy…”

… … …

Noticing a ‘pit area’ for her GTO to cool down its engine, Nagase stumbled upon Minoru, who happened to take a break there as well. He seemed happy, to the point he even took extra pre-cautionary measures by taking a look at the engine bay. Parking her Mitsubishi just beside Minoru’s coupe, Nagase, a little shaken by the recent battle, got out from her car, and simply leaned against the left fender of the Tommykaira.

Minoru had taken notice of her presence for quite sometime before he sparked a conversation, “How’s the GTO?”

“A little slow in acceleration, but grip wise, top notch,” she replied, before admitting a small fact. “With a tinge of understeer.”

“At least it’s a tinge when it came to the understeer issue,” the powerhouse commented. “Unlike mine, I prefer the Tommykaira to be rather… ‘oversteery’. It’s more exciting.”

“And a fun way to meet death,” the butch remarked, very much like her usual self.

“Well, take care of that GTO of yours, you might understeer yourself to death,” Minoru countered.

“Like I would, speed freak,”

“I am a speed freak, butchy,”

“What did you say?” scowled Nagase, aiming a right fist at Minoru.

“Nothing,” the powerhouse replied with a straight face before repeating the word. “Butchy.”

“You’re so dead,” the woman implied as she began chase while Minoru had already taken the head start. “Oy! That’s cheating!”

great chapter and kool use of nfs characters

14th Stage
Unknown Entity

It had taken quite a while for Nagase to grab her hands onto Minoru himself before she chucked him into an empty rubbish bin head first. A heavy sigh left her mouth, realizing how childish they were when it came to the two of them. She glanced at her GTO. Somehow, she needed to do something about that slight understeer. However, judging from her past experiences with that Mitsubishi of hers, she decided against that. At least this time round, the Z16A handled much better than usual.

Green eyes turned attention back to the Japanese powerhouse, who seemed to be a bit stuck in the said bin. A shrug was seen from her before Nagase simply gave a crude kick to the plastic structure, causing it to fall on its side. That did help Minoru get out from the trash bin, but he only did so after the material he was in rolled down a slight decline, crashing into a lamppost some distance away.

“Ow!” was heard from the man as he got out, a little stunned by the unexpected event before shooting off at the butch. “You do that again, Nagase, I’ll kick your ass so hard, you’ll fly back into the Sengoku period. It’ll be so hard; you’ll end up meeting Oda Nobunaga!”

“Cut the rubbish,” the woman scatted in response. “Like you would be able to do so. Anyway, want to do some testing to finalize the Tommykaira’s performance? At least by then, you’ll know how much it has improved, or weakened.”

“Don’t say that the blood red R is getting weaker after all that repairs!” Minoru somehow countered with haste. “If not, it would be all for nothing.”

“Now you’re whining like a kid,” wheezed Nagase, somehow a little amused and exhausted by the powerhouse’s behaviour.

“I’m not a kid, and I’m not whining.”

“Well, you are only 19, a whopping 8 years younger than me, so you’re a kid for me.”

“You are already 27 and you’re still not married.”

“Like I would want to get married; the Mitsubishi GTO is already my bride.”

“You really are a butch.”

“Stop reminding me about that.”

“Butchy,”

“Whiner,”

… … …

It took them quite a while to set out into Wangan Inbound, where they would then use the ShinKanjou CWL as a turn around to Wangan Outbound. It maybe a long route to use, but at least it allowed the duo more time to clarify their doubts on the performance of their coupes. The Tommykaira R took the lead towards the specified route taken while the GTO simply tailed behind; they wanted to start their test run when both their coupes hit the Rainbow Bridge. That way, they could see how the acceleration of their respective vehicles perform before a tight right corner ensued. Using the connecting bridge from Wangan Inbound, they remained in third; using low revs, just enough to keep the speed up.

Minoru was eager to floor the gas pedal; it was as if the blood red coupe was beckoning him to so as of now. He geared up to 4th, just in case if he were to floor the accelerator, by accident or instinct. Nagase took notice of the gear change via the blow-off valve’s high pitch noise it made by the Tommykaira. No words left her mouth, but she knew the powerhouse was at least trying to resist the temptation from flooring the throttle-.

An incessant noise from a probable V10 engine was heard. She gazed at her rear view mirror; nothing. She then glanced at the side mirror to her right. An unknown vehicle was coming up fast from ShinKanjou CWL. This time, she was not sure what the brand, or model of the car was, the only thing she knew that it was crimson red in color; the same as Minoru’s Tommykaira. Nagase alerted Minoru by flashing her headlights, just so he would be aware of the upcoming vehicle. Brown eyes took notice of it. The noise from a foreign engine took his attention rather immediately. He then squinted his eyes at the side mirror to identify the logo that was on the front grille of the red unknown vehicle.

“Four circles interlocked in a horizontal plane?” he thought for a moment before an answer came into his mind. “Isn’t that Audi’s logo? If it’s so, then why does this particular model feel… odd?”

The powerhouse pondered for a while before recalling the conversation few weeks ago about Da Pimpz.

A red Audi TT with the upcoming Audi R8 body kit.

The Audi TT looking like an Audi R8, it has an S85B50 engine instead of the usual one it had stock. The BMW V10 engine from the M5.

A sense of urgency somehow kicked in for Minoru. He has no idea how much power the V10 engine produced, but he assumed it had about more than 700bhp, if that Da Pimpz member had modified the engine itself. However, at this point of time, he did not want to challenge anyone as of yet; he was still unsure on the Tommykaira’s speed. Headlights began flashing from the German made coupe. The powerhouse ignored it while Nagase tailgated his coupe, at least preventing the Audi from ramming the rear bumper of the Tommykaira. They were a kilometre away left from the Rainbow Bridge, where both Japanese drivers would dash their way across it, and in hopes of outrunning the foreign vehicle.

However, that idea did not swing their way; the Audi had went ahead, and literally nudged the right side of the Tommykaira. That had Minoru edging towards the emergency lane, very close to the barriers. He was tempted to gear down and floor the throttle, thanks to the red coupe next to his. His left hand was already holding the gear knob, just deciding his next move. Minoru bit his lip in frustration. The German made vehicle insisted on challenging to a duel, but the Japanese was not eager at the moment- a hard crunch was heard from behind. Brown eyes glanced at the right side mirror. Nagase had rammed the rear of the Audi with her silver GTO. The foreign coupe did not budge. Instead, it kept on nudging the blood red R. The butch was obviously riled by that fact. She hesitated for a moment, at what she was planning to do.

“Father is going to be furious if I do this…” she thought. “But for Minoru’s sake.”

Without any hesitation, she geared up to 3rd, and floored the gas pedal. A sudden thrust of acceleration sent the heavy coupe forwards, literally ramming into the rear bumper of the foreign vehicle with ferocity. A hard crunch was heard. Nagase swore under her breath; she could not bear to see the damage done to her front bumper- Creaking sounds was heard, not from her Mitsubishi, but from the odd looking coupe. Green eyes glanced at the result. An eyebrow from her rose, obviously in amusement. The rear bumper of the said coupe had fallen out of place, now literally dangling, just waiting to fall off. The exhaust pipe was seen, in fact standard looking.

“Is it just me or this… car I dare to call it… fake?” muttered Nagase.

However, her attention soon turned towards the Tommykaira. She could not tell why, but there was an eerie air surrounding it. It felt… overwhelming all of a sudden. Green eyes widened when the blood red R reacted hastily. A blast of flames left the exhaust pipes before a thrust of acceleration hurled the coupe ahead, leaving the two coupes behind. Nagase was dumbfounded. She knew Minoru would do an outrun sprint sooner or later, but not now. There was a winding right corner remaining before the straight on the Rainbow Bridge ensued. But even so, Nagase was still ultimately puzzled by his act.

“What the heck are you thinking, Minoru?” was her thought before she was disrupted by a sudden thrust of acceleration by the foreign vehicle itself as well.

Caught off guard again, Nagase geared up to 4th, and set on pursuit with the two red coupes that had sped off earlier on. Of course, her primary objective was to prevent that unknown car from catching up with the powerhouse’s Tommykaira.

“You’re going to get it from me when I get to you, Minoru,” scowled the butch, tailgating the car in front of her as they entered the wide right corner before the Rainbow Bridge.

… … …

Minoru found himself puzzled. He had not done anything wrong to the coupe, and yet, the Tommykaira seemed to have geared down to 3rd, all by itself, and floored the throttle. Fear seemed to have been implanted into him, and now, he found himself in a power struggle. He floored the brakes. It did have significant changes to the speed increase, but it was short lived. 4th gear was seen. Another thrust of acceleration caught Minoru by surprise. Panic kicked in as he steered the coupe through the bend before hitting the Rainbow Bridge at 260kmh.

“Hellena, this is not funny!” his voice roused within the Tommykaira, though he knew the short haired brunette was back at the apartment, and not with him. “Hellena!”

He yanked the handbrake lever with haste; it did not work. In fact, the handbrake was not functioning at all. It felt all loose, as if there was no linkage. The gear knob switched again to 5th, at 280kmh. By then, everything around Minoru was simply a blur. All he could see was the coupe, the road, and the upcoming tight right corner. He gulped, hard. Never had he felt so much fear driving the Tommykaira, knowing that something else was controlling it. The corner was still about twenty metres away, but Minoru had already turned the steering wheel to the right. The sudden change of direction had the rear of the blood red R slipping, then into an uncontrollable slide. Brown eyes widened at what he had done. He felt as if he had signed an early death with the coupe.

Minoru countersteered, in hopes of recovering from the loss of traction. It never did. Instead, the handbrake lever rose up by itself as the wheels locked by themselves; the gear knob went down to 2nd simultaneously. The throttle was minimal while braking took place as well. Unfortunately for Minoru, being in a world of panic, he noticed little of what was happening around him, only locking the wheel all the way to the left. Sliding at such dangerous speeds, the only thing Minoru could hope was not to crash in the same way as Kagura, Tessa, or even Ryou. He did not want to see himself bedridden for the next few months with the Tommykaira literally missing the action on the Shutokou. The outside barriers could be seen closing in- Minoru shut his eyes tightly; at least he did not want to see how he would crash.

The roar of the engine ensued; the throttle was floored to the carpet. All four wheels of the blood red R spun with rage while the steering wheel, even though with Minoru holding onto it, steered quickly to an angle where it could recover from the slide. A gruesome tap was heard from behind, which only sent a minor jerk to Minoru. Brown eyes cracked open again; a straight road was what he saw soon after. The throttle eased to half the power, where Minoru’s foot was. He grasped the gear knob and went up to 4th from 2nd, allowing the revs to fall to about 3’000rpm. It worked in his command. Knowing that a rest area was a short distance ahead, he steered the coupe into it while his breaths were far from calm. Literally, without turning the engine off, he got out from the Tommykaira before stumbling to the ground with his feet all shaken up.

Nagase’s Mitsubishi GTO entered the rest area next without that Audi. The butch got out from her coupe while her right index finger arrowed towards Minoru himself while raising her voice.

“Do you know what the bloody hell were you thinking speeding off just like that? I had to ram the blasted car that annoyed you all the while, until it gave up after I rammed its left side fender.”

However, Minoru had not paid attention to what the green eyed woman had said. He was still shaken by the Tommykaira’s recent act.

“It’s not me,” he muttered, though loud enough for the butch to hear.

“Not you? What?” she scowled, pacing her way nearer to the powerhouse.

“I didn’t do all that; the Tommykaira just sped off even though I was just half throttle on the gas.”

“Don’t lie! Since when there’s cars that are haunted, quit talking rubbish,” the butch countered. “You must be daydreaming.”

Minoru did not utter a word soon after. He got up to his feet, barely. Pacing his way to a vending machine, he got himself at least 4 cans of cold coffee, all of which he would down them to calm himself down. Brown eyes glanced at the red coupe with uncertainty in his mind while sitting on the pavement. Hellena would not have done that all of a sudden, even if she were to be with him. Nagase sat next to the powerhouse without any reason. Somehow, judging from Minoru’s change in behaviour in this situation, he might have been right about the issue. But even so, the butch could not give in to such a ridiculous reason as ‘haunted coupe’. She never believed such atrocity.

“Is it due to the poor linkages during the repair?” asked Nagase, only to be shot off by Minoru’s raised voice.

“If it were to be poor linkages, then why did the coupe geared up by itself, and even did all the throttle and the braking? How would you explain all that?”

“There is no such thing as a haunted vehicle! It’s your mind playing tricks on you, you blithering idiot!” green eyes narrowed, getting serious about the matter.

Minoru never answered after that. Instead, he got up to his feet, and paced his way nearer to the Tommykaira R. However, before he got into it, he spun around, yelling at the butch.

“So be it! Don’t believe at what I say, even if I die by the hands of this coupe!”

“What?” sputtered the 27 year old, somehow feeling something wrenching in her. “How can you have the heart to say that, bastard?”

The last sentence never reached the powerhouse’s ears; he had gotten inside the blood red R and sped off without any care of other drivers who were taking a break in the rest area as well. Nagase did not have the heart to give chase to that man in denial. Even if she did so, it would only do little change to the situation. Instead, she paced her way slowly to her beloved Mitsubishi GTO, while observing the damage inflicted.

“The front bumper is a little dented, but would have little to no significant affect to the handling,” she thought. “I’ll just to a repaint for now. Turns out that weird car had a fake body frame, go figure.”

As she got into the heavyweight coupe, she set the car into gear before leaving the rest area in the same direction as Minoru, though at a slower pace.

This post has been edited by outlaw-2 on Nov 20 2007, 07:37 AM

i read part of the prologue but much too lazy too read it all right now lol might just print it out then read it comp hurts eyes after so much reading.
you should definetly animate it,and make into a lil manga as from the lil i read it sounds great.

It's definitly a good story. I read it when I'm at work with nothing to do.

Yeah this stuff is pretty awesome! I have it all printed out!

I've already made my own Wangan story, but I don't think I'll put it up.

15th Stage
The Phantom Black Z

It had been hours since Minoru and Aikawa set off for Yokohama from their apartment in Tokyo to retrieve the Tommykaira. Of course, Hellena wanted to tag along, but felt she would be of a nuisance there. However, that was not the problem for her as of now. It was the lie she had said towards Minoru when they first met.

I used to be alive, born from a family of racers. That is, before I was tortured to death.

“That was a fluke,” muttered the brunette, sitting on the couch while her legs curled towards her face, where her arms wrapped around it slightly. “I just wanted to impress Minoru.”

Of course, Minoru and Aikawa knew about the Lucifer Z that used to be Hellena’s. But that too… was a lie. She did not ‘wield’ the black Z; she was the owner of that coupe. She drove it and earned the title of ‘The leader of the Shutokou’. She even defended it countless times, only to be defeated by the similar Tommykaira Minoru found and drove. Of course, being a spirit as of now, she snuck in, and pretended to be as such, just so she could see why Hellena was not able to defeat the coupe. And she knew; the menacing power, the diabolical acceleration, and the incredible handling. But in the hands of Minoru, the blood red coupe seemed all too tamed; it did not have the flair when she was being challenged back then. But of course, she did not have the chance to challenge the Tommykaira again…

…After all, she did crashed on the Wangan Straight, right into the divider where the connecting bridge leads to Yokohane Inbound, back to C1 ShinKanjou, and never made it out alive. The coupe would have been scrapped by then…

“I’m really a fool…” muttered the brunette before recalling the events that took place…

… … …

1999
At the rest area near the ShinKanjou CCL route…

“Oy, Hellena!” an audible voice rang into the brunette’s ears, catching her attention.

The petite woman spun around after tending to her black Nissan S30Z after doing some maintenance to it. Silver eyes caught the figure in a form of her tomboyish colleague by the name of Tokiko. Never fail, Hellena’s friend would often wear a two-piece spandex gymnasium suit with a nylon jacket worn over. Her sport shoes streaked of white and red while her exposed midriff showed much of her toned muscled physique. In a rather boyish way, she gave a light punch to Hellena’s right deltoid as a form of greeting. That had the petite lass wincing slightly at the impact, though the soreness did not affect her that much.

“Still driving that old rusty Celica of yours?” silver eyes narrowed, obviously poking fun at the woman who sported brown, shoulder-length hair with a simple white headband that wrapped around the forehead.

“At least the A60 is made in the 80s, unlike yours, which was made in the early 70s, you puny little woman,” Tokiko shot back, though Hellena was not bothered by that fact.

“Anyway, another run through ShinKanjou CCL?” asked the small sized brunette. “My 820bhp S30Z and your 550bhp Celica A60 GT-S?”

The tomboy shrugged at her colleague’s question. It was obvious that her reply would be a definite ‘yes’. However, she did not say it verbally. Instead, Tokiko paced her way back around the parking lot, where her 1980s coupe was, resting on four fresh high grip Kumho tyres. Her A60 Celica may have 550bhp only compared to Hellena’s S30Z’s 820bhp, but she had the advantage for being the lighter of the two. The woman in spandex ignited the straight-4 engine of the Toyota; only a meager rumble was heard under the bonnet. However, as soon as she depressed the throttle, the weak rumble soon churned out a coarse scream, thanks to the oversized turbocharger. Tokiko turned around, brown eyes looking directly into Hellena’s.

“What do you reckon?” the tomboy responded, revving her coupe again. “My Celica is crying for speed.”

The petite brunette could only let out a sigh before shrugging slightly, “You really are a speed freak.”

Hellena did not utter a word soon after. Instead, she got into her black coupe, and literally revved the engine to alert her colleague. Pumping the gear knob upwards, she set it into first and half-throttle the gas. The supercharger kicked in; revs rose smoothly before gearing up to second pre-maturely. The duo were still in the rest area, hence they had to consider other people’s lives. As the black Nissan led the way, the silver Celica tailed behind, just waiting to floor the gas pedal to start another speed fest.

It had been almost five years since the duo debuted into the highway racing scene, where they first met during a battle on C1 Inner Loop. Tokiko was very much a drift driver in terms of driving style back then, and she still is as of now. With that rugged attitude and behaviour, Tokiko had the potential to become a full-fledged rally car driver. However, the only problem she had was that that tomboy was very much loyal to her old rear wheel drive Celica. She loathed the newer Celicas somehow, especially the latest model. She never knew why she hated them; Tokiko would often assume that it was her instincts.

The two coupes soon hit the highway. The tomboy, with enthusiasm, flashed her headlights towards the leading S30Z. Silver eyes had already anticipated it from the start. Without any warning, Hellena simply floored the gas pedal for a few moments before gearing up to 3rd, just after the needle of the revmeter hit 8000rpm. The glorious sounds from the combination of the supercharger and the turbocharger were very much thrilling…

…especially when she had swapped the original engine for a V6 twin-turbo from a Z32…

The cries from an unforgettable straight-4 engine caught the petite woman’s attention. The rather angular Toyota had already caught up quickly, now to the right of the Nissan. However, such a situation was just as suicidal as to where they are heading; the connecting bridge where they would be linked towards the C1 Loop. The one-lane connecting bridge was enough to make both of them rushing quickly to take the lead. 220kmh was seen on the S30Z’s speedometer before it hit 4th gear, A sudden thrust of acceleration lunged the long-bonnet coupe ahead slightly, enough to signal Tokiko to back off.

“Like I would give in, Hellena!” said the tomboy in her mind before punching the gear knob to 5th at 240kmh.

Revs dropped to a low 4000rpm for the Celica’s top gear. But even so, that was not an issue to Tokiko, considering that the power-curve of her Celica; the turbo kicks in at around 4100rpm. A sudden rise of speed kicked in few moments later. A small blast of flames spat out from the exhaust pipe before acceleration allowed the coupe to edge closer to the S30Z. The connecting bridge was a mere 20 metres ahead. The faster acceleration the Toyota had enabled it to overtake the Nissan with ease. The tomboy snapped her fingers; success, she thought. Brown eyes soon glanced at the speedometer; 290kmh at 6500rpm. Another 1000rpm to go before her coupe reaches its highest speed; just a mere 320kmh.

Tokiko bit her lip at that moment; she may have the acceleration to outrun Hellena in a short sprint, but when it comes to long distance high speed chase, she would fall behind by a lot. As soon the two cars hit the connecting bridge, the lady in spandex steered her coupe slightly to the left; a divider was next, of which the right would enter the rest area. The rear of the old Celica slid out slightly. Tokiko anticipated her car’s slippery nature and somehow stabilized with a tap of the brake pedal and quick steering adjustments. Her silver Toyota maybe quick, but the ease of sliding was the issue she had to deal with. She already went ways to add a rear spoiler to increase rear downforce, but it seemed to have very little effect to the coupe.

“A wide left corner is next,” thought the tomboy before the lane widened from one, to two.

That was the best time for Hellena to take the chance of overtaking, but she hesitated doing so. She knew what was going to occur next, considering she had anticipated what her boyish colleague would do. The petite lass geared down to 3rd, executing both engine and standard braking. She steered the coupe to the outside lane; Hellena planned to simply use the same lane throughout the corner. At least she would have less time needed to speed up again. The Toyota in front of her had its brake lights on much later. The sudden change of force had the rear sliding once again, but towards the outside lane. The coupe was sliding at an angle, but was still careening towards the barriers. Speeds dropped to a low 110kmh before Tokiko reacted with a gear down to 2nd, and floored the gas. Rear wheels spun wildly as the coupe launched itself closer into the inside lane while maintaining the same speed throughout. The tomboy’s left leg soon feathered on the throttle; she had to maintain the angle of the coupe, else she would either hit in the inside wall, or into a complete spinout. Even though at such a dangerous situation, it was thrilling for Tokiko. She had always had the urge to go through corners in this manner, though in the highway, she had to limit herself from doing so.

The exit of the corner was seen. Her left hand grasped onto the gear knob, just waiting for the right time to gear up. The Celica slid its way towards the outside lane, just centimetres from hitting the front bumper of the S30Z. A faint gasp left her mouth; she shoved the gear stick to 3rd. A thrust of acceleration helped the Toyota to lunge forward from a probable accident scene with the Nissan. It had been quite a while since she had done that stint through the corner, but at least she knew she still had the ability fresh. Her attention soon diverted towards Hellena’s black, long bonnet coupe. She knew that her Celica would soon be overtaken by that S30Z, considering that they hit a long straight road before a gentle right hander ensued. 4th gear was soon reached quickly by the silver Toyota. Frustration had somehow kicked in for Tokiko. The black Nissan was closing in by the second.

240kmh was seen on the speedometer before the brunette geared up to 5th. However, at this situation, she did not have a single moment to lose fro the turbocharger to spool up once again. Her left hand soon found itself to an afterburner switch, in which she would utilize it for a short moment to boost the acceleration to recover from the turbo lag, at the risk of shortening the life of the coupe’s engine. She pulled the trigger. The boost meter showed 2.0 compared to its usual estimate of around 1.4. The thrust of acceleration was uncanny for Tokiko; it felt weird for her. Revs soon hit 5500rpm before she switched off the afterburner. A sigh of relief left her mouth; at least that function helped her to recover from the turbo lag- the roar from a V6 twin-turbo engine was heard. Brown eyes widened. No way, she thought. She had been worrying about losing the gap she already had, and using the afterburner to maintain it. But now…

“You got to be kidding me!” sputtered the tomboy as her head turned to the left, looking through the left side window.

There it was; the phantom black S30Z, with Hellena smirking as a response. It was no wonder many had been nicknaming that Nissan as ‘Lucifer Z’. No matter what one can do to maintain the gap, that coupe would always catch up. It felt unreal, unnatural for such an entity to even exist. Without any other word, Tokiko could only allow the black coupe to overtake; there was no way she could block it if she wanted to. The speedometer of her Celica had hit 320kmh; its maximum speed. The needle would only remain at 7500rpm. Any further than that would only do more harm to the A60. All the tomboy could only witness was the black coupe increasing the gap in between them, to the point it vanished into the darkness, as if being swallowed by an unknown entity.

“It’s no wonder she remains as the ‘Leader of the Shutokou’, and had retained that title for two years,” thought the woman in spandex before she let go of the throttle, allowing her car to slow down.

Far ahead, Hellena had already eased down on the accelerator as well. She had already won the battle, and further pushing the old Z would only do harm to the coupe. She had heard of the rumours flying around about her black Nissan. Being called ‘Lucifer Z’ felt a little too harsh for her liking.

“I won’t call this car ‘Lucifer Z’, considering its colour. Instead, I refer to this… as the ‘Angel Z’,” she thought.

Even though it had that menacing power to boot, and yes, even though it had the feel that many would even state as uncanny and demonic, but to Hellena, it was a cross of heavenly driving and unnerving thrill. The coupe had yet to fail her as a car. It had yet to fail Hellena for being a loyal ‘servant’. That was what the petite brunette liked about this 820bhp Z; its loyalty towards her. But of course, the license plate the coupe had begged to differ…

…Tokyo 33 te 44-666…

The double four and the triple six. She knew, the number four in Chinese meant ‘death’, while the triple six regarded by many as the sign of the devil, even though the real numerals should have been ‘616’. Combined those two, it would have probably meant as ‘double deadly devil’ for Hellena. Heck, even her very own name had the word ‘hell’ in it. She felt as if she was plagued by all that. But even so, she could not care less about the details. The small sized lady would only shrug it off as mere distractions.

“So long I’m still alive; I will keep running in the Shutokou, and retain my status as the leader of the highway,” she said audibly before speeding of through the corners before hitting the C1 ShinKanjou section.

Nice. I especially liked the A60. Also known as the RA64/65 in the U.S. I've owned 2 of them, both silver. Good little cars.

16th Stage
The Rumoured Tommykaira

For the past few days, there had been passing rumours that there might be a potential challenger that could match up to Hellena’s black Z. The petite brunette would have shrugged it off if she could, but once she heard about the fact that the challenger used a tuner car from Tommykaira, it had her on her toes. She had heard of a new coupe that was released by the said company; the Tommykaira R R34. With 370bhp done by the tuners there, there was a possibility that the power can be boosted to a staggering 880bhp; that was a massive 60bhp more compared to her Z.

Because of that said rumour, all she had been doing was driving around the Shutokou, literally in circles; from ShinKanjou CWL, through the Wangan Straight towards Yokohama, and then back to ShinKanjou via Yokohane Inbound. That was what she would do every night. But even so, she often avoided the C1 Loop. It was not that she was weak at that section; Tokiko’s presence dominated the C1 even more than Hellena herself. But even so, such a car with immense power would not have the right mind to go through the C1 Loop and challenge her; it would have been all too similar as a ‘make or break’ situation.

However, after 2 weeks of going through the Shutokou repeatedly without a single duel, Hellena felt she seriously needed a race. She wanted to make sure she still had perfect hand to eye co-ordination; the rumours might have affected it and remained unnoticeable to her. But that itself was a problem; racers like her seemed to have backed off, to the point only mere taxis and trucks were scarcely seen on the highway. Frustration kicked in. It seemed that there was no choice but to ask Tokiko for a match; most probably in C1 ShinKanjou.

“Damn you, Tommykaira R…” she muttered. “Where the hell are you?”

… … …

Once again, the Shutokou had been rather empty, to the point one could say ‘cleansed from racers’. A familiar silver Celica A60 sped down towards C1 ShinKanjou from Yokohane Inbound, most obviously late from meeting Hellena, who was waiting in the rest area in the section she was heading. It was rather unexpected for the tomboy; it was always herself that would ask that petite woman for a challenge, but not the other way around. But she knew; Hellena was a bit jittery because of the rumour.

“I would have done the same thing if I were in her shoes,” thought Tokiko, turning her coupe towards the stated rest area. “Without a challenge for almost two weeks for Hellena is like going into cold turkey.”

Just as the Celica entered the parking lot, brown eyes spotted the small-sized woman leaning against the left front fender of her black Z. Hellena’s eyes narrowed as she noticed the presence of the familiar Toyota. She felt foolish for once; a leader of the Shutokou asking a colleague of hers for a challenge, just so she could gauge her ability? It was as if Hellena was making Tokiko her guinea pig unintentionally.

“So, Hellena,” said Tokiko in her usual boyish manner, though she was hiding her concern for the petite woman. “A run down ShinKanjou CWL, or C1 Outer Loop?”

However, the small sized brunette did not answer the tomboy’s question. Instead, she sparked off a conversation that managed to get her colleague even more concerned.

“Say, Tokiko,” said Hellena before continuing. “Why does it feel weird; I mean, I’ve been searching for that Tommykaira for two weeks now, and no sign of it. I wanted to shrug it off as a blatant lie, but all I could do was only go in search for it. It’s like a disease.”

Tokiko, though now wearing a simple white cotton tank top, blue sport pants and same sport shoes, let out a sigh. It seemed that Hellena’s obsession towards the rumoured challenger had a significant impact on her, thought the tomboy. It was as if she was desperate to meet the Tommykaira, whatever reasons no one could tell. Silver eyes stared into brown ones without any warning. It there was one feature that could unnerve Tokiko; it would be Hellena’s albino-like eyes. They would always have a certain eeriness when it came to staring. The boyish brunette looked away, her right hand somehow rubbing the back of her scalp.

“It’s a hard question to ask from a person who tries to lead a simplistic life, but fails at it terribly,” replied Tokiko. “But if you want a proper answer, it might be your instincts as the current leader of the highway. After all, the Tommykaira has the potential to be the successor.”

“Guess you’re right,” Hellena responded in a lethargic manner, even though she was brimming in terms of stamina. “Maybe it’s not like myself to be all down and out like this. How about a run down ShinKanjou CWL? We’ll start flooring the throttle after the two connecting bridges merges there.”

“What can I say?” said Tokiko in a rousing voice. “Bring it on!”

… … …

It felt like ages for both Hellena and Tokiko to cruise towards ShinKanjou CWL at 70kmh; they were used to driving at least a minimum of 120kmh. But even so, their patience paid off as they approached the designated location where they would start another battle between themselves. Tokiko’s left hand grasped onto the gear knob, just waiting to kick the clutch pedal before shoving the stick into 3rd. The S30Z made the first move; the tomboy shoved the stick to 3rd just a split second after kicking the clutch pedal. However, before re-engaging the clutch, her left hand soon grasped the afterburner switch, activating the boost. Just as the clutch was in mesh with the gearbox, a sudden thrust of acceleration surged the silver Celica forward, literally overtaking the black Z at one shot.

Tokiko geared up to 4th just as the revmeter hit 7500rpm. Switching off the afterburner, she soon turned the wheel hard to the right, sending the coupe’s rear sliding slightly before her quick footwork that consisted of precise braking and throttle allowed the Celica to stabilize through the wide right hander, even though losing speed. Hellena could only swear at the moment when the Toyota overtook her. Too reckless Tokiko, she thought. Her left leg had often been on the brake pedal, just in case if her colleague were to simply spinout in that slippery Celica. A gentle left hander ensued. Hellena took the inside quickly at moderate speed in 3rd before gearing up to 4th midway. The engine responded with a faint thrust of acceleration, considering that the petite’s woman’s right foot was half throttle on the pedal. However, it did manage to get Tokiko even by exiting about a mere second later, with the Celica on the outside lane.

Hellena wanted to make a run for it, at least take the lead from the slip-prone Toyota, but her idea was shunned when another form of a gentle s-turn was next. Still flooring the gas, the petite woman desperately took the risk by overtaking the Celica slightly before jamming on the brakes, just enough for her coupe to turn without understeering. The rather angular silver coupe braked later before the rear slipped once again. However, this time round, it was very much in control, exiting the first corner of the s-turn on the same lane as Hellena was. The second corner of the said turn was next. Tokiko took the Celica to the outer lane again, this time trying to grip through the corner. Her left hand was on the gear knob, just in case if the coupe’s rear began sliding again. The tomboy steered to the left lightly while her right foot applied only a quarter-throttle. Speed did reduce through the corner, but at least the A60 was able to grip through the turn without any problems- Hellena’s Z roared past through the inside lane.

“Wait,” sputtered the tomboy. “Damn it!”

Frustration kicked in soon after Tokiko geared up to 5th. Using the afterburner for a while once again to recover from the turbo lag, she maneuvered the Celica behind the black Z, at least to keep up the pace via slipstreaming. They were on a long straight before three corners consisting of a quick right and left turns, and a wide right. Considering that it was a short sprint to the turns, it was obviously to Tokiko’s advantage in this situation. Lane changing at 280kmh, she kept the accelerator to the carpet, using all 550bhp the engine had. At 300kmh, the quick accelerating coupe overtook Hellena’s Z once again, and maintained it.

However, that was not the case for the petite woman. Silver eyes had caught attention of a blood red coupe parked on the road shoulder. A box rear spoiler was seen positioned and drilled into place like a typical GT variant. The side fenders had the words ‘Tommykaira’ written on it. Its rims were of six-spoke gold ones. A bold presence, to the point one could imagine a hell-raising aura emitting from it. Screams in a form of engine revs was heard from the Tommykaira R. Silver eyes widened in fear.

“No,” she muttered. “Not now, please.”

The deadly existence of the blood red R had Hellena very much demoralized. She even had forgotten about the race against Tokiko as well. All she ever wanted to do was throw the white flag, and retire from the highway scene.

It might be your instincts as the current leader of the highway.

That particular sentence said by the tomboy lingered in her mind. It felt that there was more to what Tokiko had said.

Obsession.

That might be the word Hellena was looking for. After all, she did go on looking for the Tommykaira for the past two weeks, every single night. Now that she had finally found it, she could not just let it go as it is; she would probably go in search for the coupe again. Headlights from the R flashed towards the Z. Tokiko in her A60 took notice of what was occurring. However, she had to worry more on the corners first, considering that it was only moments before she had to react. Hard on the brakes, she pumped the gear knob down to 3rd, allowing the Celica to execute an in-in-out cornering fashion. The 80’s car did manage to do so, but it seemed that the rear was even more tail-wagging happy than before. That was danger to Tokiko.

“The rear tyres are wearing out,” thought the tomboy. “I should try getting Michelin ones after I get rid of these.”

A quick left corner was next. The brunette feathered the throttle again, gripping through it in 3rd, but this time round, she maintained the speed. Knowing the upcoming turn was a gentle one, Tokiko geared up to 4th and floored the throttle, not caring about the tyre wear problem. There was something not right at this situation. It was as if brewing danger was forming, just waiting to burst out into a rampage. Hitting 240kmh, she hit 5th gear, literally exiting the corner at full throttle. Tokiko felt that there was a need to speed up from this point onwards- she lane-changed to evade a slow-moving van. The rear of the A60 wagged as a result, causing her to stabilize with braking before applying half throttle. It had taken her twice as long to recover but she did not care.

“Don’t you dare spinout, Celica. Not at this battle,” thought the tomboy.

At that point of time, she found herself looking at the rear view mirror more often than usual. Hellena’s black Z had not emerged from the corner. Concern grew for Tokiko; what if the petite woman’s coupe had broken down? That question was asking for the impossible; never once the Z had been found spoilt in any way. Roars and screams of engines revving were heard before tyres squealing overcame it. Tokiko’s A60 had hit 300kmh; a dangerous speed, yet her eyes were very much locked towards the rear view mirror.

“Hellena,” her voice came through.

Just after she muttered, two orbs in a form of headlights emerged from the corner. The black Z was ahead before another coupe tailed behind. Hellena shoved the gear knob to 4th as soon the needle of the revmeter hit the redline. A thrust of acceleration lunged the old Nissan forward, tyres literally struggling to keep the coupe planted to the tarmac. All too occupied with the challenger behind her, Hellena had not noticed the familiar silver Toyota when she overtook it like a stationary vehicle. Tokiko noticed the sudden change of pace the petite woman had done- another scream from another coupe sped past her before a blast of flames from its exhaust pipes ensued, somehow tempting the tomboy to give chase as well. But that was the main concern. It was Hellena’s challenger that stumped her.

“The Tommykaira R!” the brunette’s voice roused.

No doubt, it was the rumoured coupe that had the potential to be Hellena’s successor. However, there was no time for Tokiko to marvel and fear about the said blood red R. Hellena was her main concern. All the tomboy could only hope that that small-sized woman would not crash horrendously. That was all she could wish. The speedometer of her Celica had hit 320kmh, the maximum speed possible.

“Damn it! I’ve hit max speed and they’re still pushing on? What kind of speeds are they hitting?”

… … …

Revs dropped from 6000rpm at 5th gear to 5500rpm in 4th. Silver eyes gazed at the left corner with a slight decline before turning the wheel early. Entering through the inside, the Z slipped at the halfway point, exiting on the outside lane. Flooring the throttle soon after that, Hellena had expected the Tommykaira to do the same as well, just tailgating her black Z. But all she could notice was the blood red R’s queer driving style. The Tommykaira entered the corner through the outside at high speed before slowing down at mid-point, exiting on the inside. But that was not the main issue; it was the fact that the blood red R had managed to get even, now racing neck to neck. That had Hellena on alert.

“The Tommykaira is a true threat to my position,” she thought before her eyes narrowed, paying full attention to the road ahead instead. “Then it’s settled then, whoever wins gets the title for ‘The Leader of Shutokou’!”

The two coupes soon screamed down the ShinKanjou CWL, on route to the straightest section of the highway, the Wangan Outbound.

Obsession; a disease, or a curse?
Or was it just something that lingers from within?
The blood that runs through our body; like fuel similar to petrol,
The mind; like the ignition of a screaming engine.

To Be Continued

when is new chapter goin up

Patience is a virtue, friend. And writing can be a pain.

Take your time, Outlaw. I like what I'm reading thus far.

17th Stage
Angel Z Against Tommykaira R

Silence, very much treasured in the Shuto Highway; now shattered with the haunting roars and screams from two highly powerful coupes. Still rampaging through the two-lane ShinKanjou CWL towards Wangan Outbound, and neck to neck, were the black Nissan S30Z and the blood red Tommykaira R. With power-to-weight ratio that could be said as equal, the two coupes constantly edging ahead of each other at every other opportunity, be it minor bursts of acceleration, or lane changing due to other vehicles on the highway that seemed to act like blocks of stationary metal.

Hellena pumped the gear knob into 5th at 280kmh before hammering the accelerator to the carpet. The twin-turbo V6 engine derived from a Z32 howled in response before a thrust of acceleration surged the lightweight coupe forwards, just enough to edge ahead of the blood red R. She needed the lead at this point of time, considering that the upcoming corner; a wide right hander with an extended emergency lane near the mid-corner. That specific part of the turn was the one that often had many racers crashing at high speed, let alone Hellena, who had experienced it once with the same car she drove some 4 years ago before she had the engine swap. That was the reason why she needed to gain the upper hand so to not get distracted by that blasted Tommykaira. She swerved into the inside lane the moment the S30Z entered the corner, literally had the R34 steering clear from a potential crash. Silver eyes narrowed, as if trying to focus the road ahead instead of being distracted by that particular emergency lane. 285kmh was seen before the front tyres of the Fairlady began to understeer at the mid-corner.

“Damn it!” yelped Hellena before tapping on the brakes and gearing down to 4th to slow down the car dramatically, deeming her sudden big lead in the turn useless. “Turn!”

The speed of the 1970’s coupe went down to a mere 200kmh in 3rd gear before full grip registered onto the asphalt. But by then, the blood red R had taken the inside lane, and cleanly overtook the brunette without even a hint of difficulty. A blast of flames from the said coupe’s exhaust pipes were seen before it lunged away from her with the screams from its straight-6 twin turbo engine that sounded like thousands of people getting sucked in into the turbochargers before getting crushed in between the pistons while wailing for help. Hellena hit the top part of the steering wheel, knowing that if she did not catch up soon, her rival would simply continue speeding up to the point disappearing from her vanishing point.

“I will not lose to some machine that relied more on computers than the driver!” the brunette gnashed before shoving the gear knob to 4th at 230kmh.

The lightweight coupe responded to her needs while steering behind the Tommykaira, slipstreaming behind it. That allowed her to gain more speed than usual, hence the Fairlady would be able to catch up at a shorter period of time- Hellena swerved to the left when she saw the Tommykaira doing so. A split second later, the S30Z blasted past a slow moving bus, which very much woken her up from her train of thoughts. Reality struck her hard; she was reaching speeds up to 270kmh, and yet she felt that it was still not fast enough, till that stint happened. Fear soon grew from within. She knew, at that point of time, she was on that last straw of life; one small mistake and her existence would be over. But then, there was another side of her that needed the ecstasy of speed; her other self as the leader of the Shutokou. The other self that lusts for victory and ruling throughout the highway. The one… that drives Hellena.

She could not tell what she was doing, but all she knew that she had geared up to 5th at 280kmh, and floored the accelerator just seconds after the clutch was re-engaged. By then, the brunette realized she had caught up with her competitor, now literally tailgating at point blank range. Lane-changing onto the inside to evade a taxi, she steered the Z into the empty lane, and kept the throttle floored, even though a wide right corner was next just after a divider. But even so, the blood red R, too, followed suit on the opposite lane without a hint of hesitation as well. 320kmh was seen on Hellena’s speedometer before the two coupes blasted past the said divider, the Z literally missing it by mere centimetres.

“Here’s the corner!” thought the brunette.

The Fairlady entered the corner first before brake lights were seen. Gearing down to 4th straight away, Hellena floored it once she saw the speed falling to 240kmh. At a speed like that, no car would be able to clear it, but she took the big risk. The grip had helped her steer the coupe into the inside lane. However, once the revs hit 7000rpm, the front grip began to fade once again, this time causing the Z to head literally towards the outside lane. The exit of the corner was seen. The brunette hoped that she could full throttle her way out of the turn without damaging her Angel Z, as her rival was literally tailing behind her like a leech. The left side of the lightweight coupe crossed the outside lane, now in between the emergency lane, and the barriers. Hellena shut her eyes at that split moment, expecting to crash and spinout, rendering her defeat.

Nothing that she had expected occurred. Silver eyes cracked open, realizing that she had cleared the corner with the blood red R still tailing behind. Her heartbeats could be compared to the revmeter of her coupe, but she could not spare any more time to pay attention to it. Shoving the gear knob to 5th, Hellena mashed onto the throttle, knowing that from that point onwards, it would be a straight dash into Wangan Outbound, the specific section of the highway that separates winners and losers. Silver eyes glanced at the rear view mirror for split second, noticing the Tommykaira lane-changing, charging up right next to the Z. Hellena was overwhelmed with emotions from that point onwards, but she knew one feeling that would keep her going; pride.

“Let’s see what you got, blood red R!” she muttered under her breath before the two coupes entered the said section, taking the two extreme right lanes.

… … …

However, while Hellena was all fired up and speeding her way against the potential successor, Tokiko was overly concerned about her colleague and the race that was initiated all too suddenly. A wide right corner was next; the one with the extended emergency lane. Tapping on the brakes before gearing down to 3rd, the A60 Celica found itself sliding towards the outside lane, a dangerous sign that the tomboy could be the next potential victim to crash at that spot. Tapping on the brakes again, she desperately adjusted the angle of the slide, just enough to clear it before going full throttle. The thrust of acceleration fortunately assisted the 1980’s coupe to recover, exiting the corner just before a collision could occur.

A heavy sigh left her mouth, knowing that if she had not have the ability to powerslide through that corner, her beloved Celica would be done for. But even so, Hellena was very much on her mind. That petite brunette had been in cold turkey from battles, and all of a sudden, she was greeted by a challenge from the well known Tommykaira R. It felt as if the whole time, it was a ploy to bog Hellena down in her skills. But even so, Tokiko knew that despite that small-structure, and that easy going nature of Hellena, inside she is a battle hardened highway racer with almost six years of experience.

Gearing up to 4th, she went half throttle at mid rev before flooring it near the peak. At that moment, she had to conserve the tyres, so she could speed safely once she hits the Wangan straight. But even so, the low speed limit her Toyota has was the main disadvantage. Most cars down Wangan would be able to hit speeds up to 380kmh, or even the legendary 400kmh mark. But her Celica with 320kmh? To Tokiko, she felt more like a shrew in that region. After all, her aim was to become a rally driver with the same A60 Celica she has. But even so, she pressed on. Somehow, at the back of her mind, she felt as if something wrong was going to occur. Something very wrong.

“Hellena, don’t be reckless,” she thought, gearing up to 5th at 240kmh.

… … …

The petite brunette hit the top part of the steering wheel once again. Anger seemed to have fuelled her ever since the two coupes hit the Wangan straight. The Tommykaira had gained the upper hand and overtook her black Z with such ease. She could not understand why it was so before resorting to slipstreaming to keep up while speeds up to 340kmh were reached. An assumption came into mind on a possibility; afterburner. That was one advantageous feature any turbocharged vehicle would have over naturally aspirated variants, even Hellena’s black Z has it. But using it comes with a price.

Utilising the afterburner only increases the strain on the engine, and even overheating it prematurely. The brunette knew the consequence, but the urge of using it was overwhelming. Never had she felt so dirty in her whole life; the feeling of killing her beloved Angel Z by initiating the afterburner, ripping its life away bit by bit. But even so, it was the title that is on the line, and Hellena had to use all measures to protect it, even if by means of destroying her black S30Z in the process. At 360kmh, the two coupes entered the tunnel at frightening speed, not caring in the world about the slow-moving vehicles that were lane-changing.

“Here goes,” thought the brunette before she steered the lightweight Z into the far left lane of the highway before utilizing the afterburner. “Win or death, that’s the only choice, Angel Z!”

The moment the device was activated; Hellena then realized why her black Fairlady was called Lucifer Z. The monstrous screams of despair made by the engine, the deep gurgling groans of hammering from the exhaust pipe. Combined both sounds together, the coupe made an orchestral tune that even a human could scamper away in fear. It was a vast difference for Hellena. Never had she experienced such menacing horror in her own coupe. In fact, this was the very first time she had utilized the afterburner. 380kmh was seen on the speedometer; the brunette took a quick glance at the Tommykaira’s position. Silver eyes widened.

“You’re kidding me!” she sputtered. “We’re still neck and neck!”

Unfortunately, it was true. The blood red R had lane-changed right next to Hellena’s Fairlady to evade a taxi, and was still putting a fierce fight. The end of the tunnel was near; and the petite woman knew that she had to gain the lead in order to decide on her route; through the connecting bridge towards Yokohane Inbound, and back to C1 Outer Loop. That was the plan she needed to defeat the Tommykaira. If speed was not to her advantage, then handling would. But then again, as what she had seen back in the ShinKanjou route, her rival did use unorthodox ways to deal with the corners; it felt beyond possible for Hellena. Fortunately, she had taken the lead after speeds of 395kmh were reached without problems. But even so, she had to take notice of the temperature gauge of her Fairlady.

“398kmh,” thought Hellena before steering hard to the left after releasing the gas pedal; but the speedometer caught her eye. “400kmh? Wait, I’m not slowing down!”

By that instant, she floored the brake pedal, hoping to slow down the Z as it turned into the bend. The coupe did decreased in speed, but seeing 350kmh was still a major threat to her. She geared down to 4th- impossible!

“It’s jammed!” sputtered the brunette, this time thrown into a world of panic. “And the throttle’s wide open!”

Hellena, this time round had to rely only on the brakes to get her to a full stop, but that was a problem as well. For an old coupe, it was not fitted with Anti-Lock Brakes, which meant that she had to feather the pedal to slow her down. But in all that confusion, she had not realized the direction where her coupe had been heading at such a speed; 320kmh now. Silver eyes darted forwards before pure fear engraved into her mind. The road divider between the connecting bridge towards Yokohane Inbound and Wangan Outbound was dead ahead. She steered the coupe to the left; it did managed to turn, but barely. The black Z was understeering at that moment while the wheels locked at the same time under braking. But at that moment, there was one sentence she blurted out before everything went pitch black.

“I don’t want to die!”

The front end of the S30Z collided into the divider at high velocity, literally wrecking the whole engine bay. Hellena found herself thrown forwards, her head slamming against the steering wheel before parts of the engine bay ripped through the cabin, stabbing her at multiple places. Silver eyes widened at the sudden impact before the rear of the coupe launched itself upwards, wrecking the roof of the Fairlady in the process.

…I don’t want to die…

The windscreen shattered, its glass shards piercing into her body before blood was seen literally bleeding profusely from her midriff downwards, while her head had cracked open by the forehead. It was then time was at a standstill for Hellena, her final words now in bloodied coughs, though a strained scream.

“I can’t die yet!”

… … …

Present

“Tokiko was never to be seen soon after that,” muttered Hellena. “Some say she had left Tokyo for Gunma, most probably doing touge racing. Guess it was for the best for that tomboy.”

The brunette got up to her feet soon after she heard an engine revving from the outside. She knew who it was; Aikawa. But Hellena did not know what coupe that twin-tailed woman had been driving all along. Though it did sound it came from a Z32, so the brunette assumed it was a 300ZX. Literally bursting out of the apartment, the petite woman greeted Aikawa in a rather cheery manner, even though the blonde was very much pissed off by the situation in Yokohane. But by then, Hellena found herself stumped.

“Aikawa, is that the car you have been driving?” she asked the 20 year old, who was downing a can of cold beer to relieve her stress.

“Yes, it’s been with me since back in year 1999. Bought it off from a junkyard who wanted to scrap it, but I salvaged it. Took me 3 years to get it working again; this black Fairlady S30Z.”

Uneasiness settled in Hellena, there was something familiar about Aikawa’s Z. She scrambled to the front, then to the rear, in search for the number plate. There it was; Tokyo 33 te 44-666.

“It can’t be,” thought the brunette before asking the blonde to open the hood.

Twin-tails seemed a little annoyed by Hellena’s sudden interest of her coupe, but gladly did so, just to show her engine off. But by the moment the brunette saw the engine, she stumbled to the ground, in a kneeling position.

“Aikawa,” she sputtered, this time getting the blonde very much concerned.

“Hey, get a grip! Calm down!” said twin-tails in a rather panicked manner.

“This car, the Angel Z. I used to own it. I died in this car.”

“It can’t be yours,” Aikawa protested.

“Then why is it that my name is still engraved on the body frame?” asked Hellena, very much in confusion this time round.

“What, then what makes the other Lucifer Z out there you said as?”

… … …

The revival of a deadly car,
The danger that reeks the Shutokou,
The Angel Z reborn under peoples’ noses,
The probable replay of another fatal crash.

u should post this on fanfiction.net

I posted this on fictionpress already. Currently the only car racing fiction story still active on that website.

Racer 666: Shutokou Wars
http://www.fictionpress.com/s/2324642/1/

18th Stage
Assault Of The Fake R8

Rest area near ShinKanjou CWL towards Wangan Outbound

Very much as Minoru would say at that particular moment of time, he swore the Tommykaira R was haunted. But at the same time, Nagase’s opinions too have made him very much thought that he was just simply hallucinating all the while. Confusion set in for him before he slammed the top part of the steering wheel. One side of him wanted to believe the spiritual side of the coupe while the other does not. But an idea came into mind; he had to drive it again to believe it.

“Prove me wrong, Berserker R. Prove me that you’re tame,” muttered Minoru before igniting the engine of the said coupe.

As the revs rose to 7000rpm, the melody of a domesticated purr churned out to a wailing shriek before it reverted to a grumble; simply taunting the powerhouse to bury the foot down on the accelerator. Brown eyes narrowed, as if trying to resist the coupe beckoning him to do so. Shifting the gear knob to 1st, he applied half throttle to the coupe, allowing it to move out from the rest area without endangering other drivers who were present at the time. But even so, Minoru had not noticed a familiar butchered Audi from a distance, simply waiting for the right time to strike. A quick rev from its V10 engine caught the attention of the drivers in the rest area before a squeal from the tyres launched the “Audi R8”, expecting a battle against that blood red coupe that posed a threat to Da Pimpz.

“You are nothing, Tommykaira. You’re the shit, I’m the gold!” the driver in the German coupe remarked, flooring the throttle while flashing the headlights at the target incessantly the moment he spotted it. “Come on, shrew!”

Minoru was very much annoyed by the constant flashing from the car behind him. He took a glance from the rear view mirror, before a sense of urgency kicked in. Not that coupe again, he thought. But no matter, a battle might be a good idea for him to prove his coupe. A faint smile lifted from his face, after several hours of frowning, and expressionless stint. Though he was still mid-rev in second gear, the powerhouse geared up to 3rd, and floored the gas pedal, launching the duel. Tyres went from a quick squeal, then kicking up faint smoke as the blood red R lunged forward, leaving a big gap in between. But even so, the one in the Audi was not fazed at all. Without uttering another word, the one in the German coupe geared up to 3rd as well, putting the foot down to the metal. Tyres squealed violently before a powerful burst of acceleration literally threw the coupe forwards, catching up with a simple slipstream.

The sudden stint made by the foreign vehicle had very much made Minoru stumped. There was no way a coupe could catch up at such speeds. The S-turn was coming up fast. Still going at full throttle, the powerhouse turned the wheel early, allowing the Tommykaira to enter the right bend on the inside lane while tapping 170kmh. Slight understeer kicked in as the speed rose to 180kmh. Brown eyes took a quick peek at the rear view mirror. It seemed that his opponent has a slight issue with tighter turns. But no matter, Minoru had to increase the gap while he had the chance. A left bend was next. The powerhouse turned the wheel all the way to the left, just in time before the blood red R entered the turn. The rear of the coupe slid out by the sudden change of direction. Computers within the vehicle struggled to maintain stability and grip, and did so when the rear tyres caught enough grip to recover. Minoru geared up to 4th the moment he cleared the S-turns. 245kmh was shown on the speedometer.

“Still not enough,” he murmured, literally flooring the throttle.

Anxiety kicked in; he was not sure whether his opponent had caught up, now simply tailgating. But even so, seeing that Audi was enough to kill his concentration; he did not want that to occur. A slight decline left turn was next. Taking the outside lane to clear it, he feathered the throttle before his left leg depressed on the brake pedal- a howling whine deliberately caught his attention. Minoru knew it was that European car, but he did not have the heart to locate its position. The Tommykaira entered the corner, front tyres turned to the left swiftly. Grip pulled the coupe towards the inside before the decline rendered the attempt useless. Brown eyes widened in panic the moment he realized the coupe was understeering. Brake lights lit up before a downshift occurred, into 3rd. The blood red R regained traction the moment speeds hit 160kmh, exiting the blasted corner on the outside. But that did not help him relieve his tensions. The front section of the butchered Audi was already in his view to his left.

“Faster, Berserker R!” thought the powerhouse, hitting 4th gear once again.

He spun towards the direction where his rival was; the “R8” was edging ahead ever so slowly, which posed a threat to Minoru. The Tommykaira hit 5th gear the moment he saw 280kmh. The situation still remained the same. Frustration settled in his mind. Never had he felt the need for more speed.

“Faster!” he scowled. “You can do better than this, R!”

305kmh was seen on the speedometer. Minoru’s left hand was already grasping the gear knob, waiting for the right time to gear up. However, he was hesitating. He could not have the heart to do so this time round. He did not understand, at the point of time, this feeling he had right now; the nauseous, head-spinning sensation. He felt he was being dominated by something else. The screams from the engine; thrilling yet drunk by its noise, that might probably be one of the factors. A wide right bend with an extended emergency lane was next. Brown eyes soon caught sight of the corner. Knowing the danger that particular turn could do, he geared down to 4th without braking, allowing the speed to decrease naturally before entering it. Front tyres turned to the right even before the bend came into play. 250kmh was on the speedometer. The Audi surged forward, as if not knowing what was ahead.

The Tommykaira entered on the inside, before the coupe found itself heading towards the outside lane the moment it hit mid-corner. The powerhouse feathered the throttle, allowing the blood red R to decrease speed, just enough to regain the traction needed to clear the corner. 240kmh was on the- tyres were heard squealing violently. Minoru looked at the direction of the source. The “R8” found itself oversteering, after realizing the danger of the bend. The rear of the white coupe slid outwards in an uncontrollable fashion while the front wheels countersteered desperately to regain control. It did, but instead of recovering from the slide, the Audi snapped into the opposite direction before brake lights were on; now on the outside lane.

“Damn it!” sputtered the powerhouse, shifting down to 3rd, flooring the throttle while in attempt to steer the Tommykaira onto the inside.

Grip registered on all four tyres from the Japanese coupe as it slipped into the targeted lane, just missing the Audi by inches. Minoru geared up to 4th soon after, leaving the spun out rival in his dust, and in hopes that he would not be chased once again. Being targeted by the same vehicle twice had him agitated. But even so, he peered at the rear view mirror, just hoping that the blasted German automobile would not return for another duel.

“Just stay there. I’m getting out of here,” he thought-. “What?”

… … …

On route to Wangan Inbound

Aikawa was puzzled why that little petite woman in a form of Hellena insisted of test driving the ‘Angel Z’, till the brunette retold her past. That had satisfied the blonde’s doubts; but the main issue was…

“What possessed me to tag along with you, Hellena?” asked twin-tails to the silver eyed lass.

“I’m not too sure, but I assume it’s your instincts as the ‘Ace of Yokohane’, isn’t it?” responded Hellena before gearing up to 3rd at 150kmh. “It feels the same as before. How much power does it have?”

“750bhp at the moment,” Aikawa replied, glancing at the side window before throwing a question at the brunette. “Then what about that time when you drove it? Is it in the same range?”

“It wasn’t. It had 820bhp then,”

That response was enough to capture the blonde’s attention, “You’re kidding me, right? 820bhp? I just had new twin-turbochargers installed, the most powerful I could get. What did you do, getting the power up to that level?”

“That, it’s better if you find out yourself, if this ‘Angel Z’ realizes that the original owner is driving ‘her’, not you, Aikawa,” Hellena responded, leaving Twin-tails very much puzzled. “Though, I feel that there’s something not right the moment we hit the Shutokou.”

“Why is that?” asked the blonde before a jerk in a form of a gear shift to 3rd was made by the brunette.

Their conversation was very much interrupted when they spotted two coupes entering Wangan Outbound from ShinKanjou CWL at high speed. But even so, it was the particular Tommykaira R that the duo caught attention of. Minoru, both of them thought. And judging from the hasty driving that powerhouse had been doing, it was an obvious sign that the white… Audi was very much a threat. That German automobile got Aikawa sputtering. She knew where it came from.

“Da Pimpz! Hellena!”

“Here we go again, Angel Z; down this same fated stretch,” muttered the brunette before silver eyes narrowed, in fascination.

Flooring the accelerator, the twin-turbochargers spooled up once hitting 4500rpm. Speeds seemed to have jumped literally; from 170kmh initially, to 230kmh. Hellena punched the gear knob to 4th, still going at full throttle. The familiar sounds of the V6 grumbling for Aikawa had turned foreign; this time of rampaging cries of anger and murderous intent. The lightweight coupe lunged forward caused by the acceleration, catching up with the battling duo. The thrill kicked in for the brunette, allowing her to sputter the same words as before.

“Win or death, that’s the only choice, Angel Z!”

… … …

Minoru swore that he had seen that white Audi spinning out, and leaving it to eat the Tommykaira’s dust. He knew that recovering from that situation would meant a big time loss, and the Audi should at least catch up several kilometres later, probably after he had left the Shutokou. But what he had experienced right now was beyond him; when was it possible for a spun out coupe to make a comeback, in less than thirty seconds? There was no way one could execute a quick recovery move, and hit speeds of 270kmh in that time frame. With the blasted German coupe tailgating behind the blood red R, the two vehicles soon hit Wangan Outbound; a sign that it might be the place where Minoru could prove the Tommykaira’s prowess.

Hitting 5th gear, a short burst of flames left the exhaust pipes before acceleration pushed the coupe forward, increasing the gap from the “R8”. Cold sweat broke out from his forehead, knowing that the Audi would just breathe right behind the R, just waiting for the right time to strike. But even so, another form of engine screaming was heard. Brown eyes glanced at the side mirror, he knew that was Aikawa’s S30Z, but it was the person behind the wheel that caught his attention.

“Hellena?” he thought- a jerk had the powerhouse almost hitting the top part of his steering wheel. “What?”

It was obvious, the Audi was not looking for a duel at that moment; it was trying to make Minoru crash at dangerous speeds. Frustration kicked in; at 305kmh, the powerhouse geared up to 6th, and floored the throttle- he swerved to the right, evading a truck cab. The rear of the Tommykaira slid towards the outside barriers. Brake light lit up on the said coupe, slowing down to 275kmh before it regained traction. As a result, the white “R8” had overtaken- as well as the S30Z with Hellena behind the wheel. That sight confused Minoru most, but even so, there was no time to think about that issue; the butchered car was the one he had to deal with first. Remaining at top gear, he steered the R behind the Fairlady, at least gaining speed by slipstreaming.

“Hellena, work with me here; bring that Audi down,” he thought, hoping that the brunette had heard it.

Brown eyes glanced at the speedometer the moment the blood red R caught up with the ‘Angel Z’, “310kmh. It’s now or never.”

Lane-changing at that speed, the Tommykaira’s rear slipped outwards again as a result before its tyres gripped onto the dry asphalt, recovering from that state. At the outer most lane, his attention was on the second lane from the left, where the damned “R8” was. Overtaking Hellena at 330kmh, Minoru recklessly lane-changed to where the butchered coupe was, tailgating back as a result. As soon it occurred, the three cars entered the tunnel, speeds tapping 340kmh by then. The slipstreaming assisted the R to ram into the rear bumper of the Audi once-twice. The powerhouse was expecting a counterattack, and had swerved to the innermost lane almost immediately before he spotted brake light lighting up on the German vehicle.

“Too close,” he thought before the black Z caught up, with Aikawa on the passenger seat, signaling Minoru to speed up.

Burying the foot down on the throttle, the powerhouse took a quick glance at the speedometer; 360kmh. The Tommykaira, by then, was acting strange. It felt that it could go faster than that speed. It felt that it was chained up, now on the verge of breaking them, unleashing its real strength. 7000rpm was on the revmeter, 2500rpm more to its limit- a hard thud from the back had Minoru jerking forward, diverting his awareness back to the rear view mirror. Once again, the Audi was right behind him. He bit his lip, knowing that the Audi would not stop until he crashes- a horn from the black Z caught his attention. It was Hellena, signaling him to keep going. Minoru was puzzled by what she meant, but he had no choice. 375kmh on the speedometer, and yet no change in the situation; pressure had built up for the powerhouse, driving him to the point of losing concentration.

“Come on, Hellena,” he muttered, lane-changing very early to evade a 1980’s coupe, though too fast to make out what it was, except for the colour; silver.

… … …

At the same time, the petite brunette in the black Z had taken notice of the identical coupe Minoru had paid attention at, but managed to grasp what it was, “Silver A60 Celica? Wait, that can’t be...”

“Hellena! Try to ram the Audi’s rear fender. Make that jackass spinout,” the blonde’s voice rang into Hellena’s ears. “That’s the only choice now.”

Silver eyes narrowed when she realize the burden on her shoulders right now to prevent Minoru from crashing. At 365kmh, Hellena slipstreamed behind the fake R8 in order to catch up. Speeds rose from 365kmh to a mind-blowing 380kmh. For an Audi TT with a butchered body kit, it was already an achievement for it, but she was not interested at that fact at all. Lane-changing to the right after passing a truck cab, Carefully, Hellena nudged the front bumper of the S30Z to the right rear fender. It did not budge, not a single hint as well. The brunette took drastic measures from there. Lane-changing to the right again, she timed her strike while increasing the speed to 390kmh- a taxi was in her way. She swerved early to evade it before a hint of fear etched in her mind. She did not want to get Aikawa in the matter, especially if she were to crash again-.

“Now!” the blonde sputtered.

As if by instinct, the brunette steered the Fairlady towards the Audi, its front bumper literally slamming to the rear fender. An audible burst was heard before the white coupe lost traction. Hellena floored the gas pedal without hesitation as the Tommykaira and the ‘Angel Z’ exited the tunnel, blasting at 395kmh. Seconds later, the German automobile was spotted shooting out of the tunnel, while brake lights were seen lit consistently, but to no avail. Just as the Audi gripped onto the road at 250kmh, the only thing the driver could see was a divider, and pitch black darkness. A blood curdling sound of metal smashing into the said divider was heard while the whole front portion of the “R8” was caved in, all the way to the ****pit. The running engine it had, a V10 from a BMW M5, still spooled up the revs, as if the throttle was jammed, before it died out.

Only the sounds of crickets were heard from that point onwards. A bloodied right hand, most probably severed from the fatal crash, jutted out from the twisted metal frames as crimson formed a pool on the asphalt where the driver’s seat was. A taxi pulled over after noticing the wrecked coupe, and had most probably notified the emergency services.

Just ahead, the blood red R and the black Z were still speeding close to 400kmh. Both Minoru and Hellena could not tell why, but it seemed that the two coupes were warring at each other. Brake lights lit up the moment a gentle left hander ensued. Nothing, not even a hint at all. Instead, the two vehicles entered the corner at full throttle on the inside, while understeering ever so slightly towards the outer barriers.

Confusion set in for both drivers. They could not understand why the Berserker R and the Angel Z were not braking. Hellena began to panic; not again, she thought. It was at that very same place where she spun out and crashed at the divider with the connecting bridge towards Yokohane Inbound.

“Stop, Angel Z! Stop!” the brunette yelled without thinking. “The Audi was the target!”

“Berserker R! Don’t you dare!” the powerhouse scowled, jamming the brakes.

The two coupes still continued, as if nothing happened. The two drivers were already flooring the brake pedal. Blasting past the previous site where Hellena once crashed, the Fairlady took the lead before the Tommykaira caught up on the inside, capturing the position just after exiting the corner. The two vehicles crossed under the connecting bridge- the brakes for the two coupes kicked in. Speeds reduced from 398kmh to 200kmh before the Z spun out; the lack of anti-lock brakes. The blood red R came to a halt just before the black Fairlady cut past its lane; any further and it could result in a crash. The tyre screeching ceased seconds later. Minoru, Hellena, and Aikawa got out of their vehicles, very much puzzled at what had occurred back then.

The petite brunette was gasping from what she experienced; it was as if that portion of the Wangan Outbound was the cause of problems, whatever reasons she could not tell. Silver eyes glanced at Minoru, who had slumped onto the asphalt, his back leaning against the Tommykaira- a groaning roar of another vehicle overwhelmed Hellena. Her head spun to the direction of the source. A pair of orbs in a form of headlights was spotted before its shape was unveiled. There it was; the Lucifer Z, as if mocking them as it cruised by the two coupes. Aikawa, Hellena, and Minoru were even more confused. They did not overtake any vehicle that had the same shape as the S30Z, but…

… … …

Still in the tunnel…

“Am I seeing things?” thought a woman, who sported a two piece spandex gym suit while donning a nylon jacket. “Did I just saw that Tommykaira R, and the Angel Z?”

Flooring the gas pedal of her A60 Celica, she geared up to 3rd at 120kmh, somehow in fear, that she might see the same accident, at the same location, while in her mind…

“Hellena!”

Wow, this is a really good story. When is the next one due to come out?

I hope it's soon. I'm addicted to this story

its a good story tha mean we are goin 2 wait 4 a while

I'm hooked i've read it for the past 2 days after school. I just finished the last chapter.

[SIZE=1][COLOR=red]I love the story I can't wait for up dates I'm trying to ready the side story every chance I get but I am really drawn to this fanfic. I think it's one of the few that I have read that I like.

@ Outlaw 2
Nice story, i think your story more creatuve than my comic, Midnight R

Take note that this is not a chapter update. Instead, I found a program called Face Maker, which I am able to re-create how the characters look like. The Chapter update will only resume in mid-March, after I deal with the Examinations that is looming near after the four-day test frenzy starting coming Monday.

No matter, here are how the characters look with the program I've utilised. Since the program has limited choices, don't be amused if you notice some similarities in many ways...

Minoru Hasegawa


Kagura Ishida


Aikawa Takashizawa


Hellena


Tokiko Ren


Sagara Sakurazaki


Ryou Shima


Nagase Kizuato


Tessa Schneider

now i can visualize it i guess.

wow... that seems that's the software i was searching, would you mind posting a link for download if possible or giving more info about it?

If you want an English friendly version, it's here in deviantart.

http://foxrichards.deviantart.com/art/FaceMaker-52755515

However, if you want the original variant, which is in full Japanese, here it is...

http://umeumewoman.fc2web.com/soft/facemaker.html

I'm using the latest version, 3.2
Not too sure if the previous versions were better or not.

the one from deviant art lacks of anti-aliasing, i'll use the japanese one instead. Big thanks!