Speed [Open]

[Anne Brocar'do]

When Anne had heard that the Army had just got new speeder bikes in, she had made sure she was among those testing them. The idea of being able to do this had been exciting to the lieutenant. She was a driver at heart, albeit a rather hot headed one, and this was too good an opportunity to risk passing it on!

She didn't care that the testing hours were very early. With her fiance off world on a mission, she stayed on base every day, so making it to the tracks didn't take long.

She had already got a light breakfast after her morning working out routine, as she showed up. She spoke with the captain in charge of the test and soon enough, she had been pointed out towards one of the new bikes.

Putting her helmet on, the brunette hopped on it, and she ignited the engines right away. This was going to be fun.

[Hector Thymes]

“Lieutenant Brocar’do.” Came a familiar voice from the pits. Cadet Hector Thymes walked across the track to meet up with the brunette. It had been a while shince he had last seen her, not since his recruitment when she helped him through the process and showed him around the barracks.

“Should have known you’d be out here. I remember you said you liked to drive.” Hector said with a sly smile. He also remembered telling her he’d love to race her. He looked around the track, he was supposed to be on duty, given the bikes were new and needed testing, but what better way then to push them in a race.

“How have you been?”

[Anne Brocar'do]

Anne turned on her heels when she heard a familiar voice. "Cadet Thymes!" She waved to the young man she had helped with his recruitment a few months ago. That was kinda crazy to think of all that happened since then!

"I had to volunteer to test these new speeder bikes!" She grinned to him and offered a handshake. "And please call me Anne." They were off duty and she didn't see the need to be all stuck on protocol.

"I've been busy. Was stationned off world for a while, then came back to Telos. Doing much better these days." She knew she had been in her brooding time back then, and sometimes snappy. It was hard to think that since the day she had helped Thymes through his interview and showing him around the barracks, so much had happened in her life.

"How are you?"

[Hector Thymes]

“Good.” Hector replied back. “I just got back from my own off world mission... my first. And let me tell you, I do not like being shot at. I don’t mind working on the transports and bikes, but I’d prefer to stay off the front lines.”

Hector sighed. “I doubt that’s going to happen though. Still, managed to return without a missing limb, so it was fine in the end.” He turned to the bikes, and gave Anne a wide smirk. “So, up for a race?”

[Anne Brocar'do]

"Glad that you're back in one piece. I've lost track of how many times I was hospital bed ridden when returning from my missions." Anne replied with a pensive look in her eyes. "There are plenty opportunities on the Republic worlds, so I hope that you can stay away from the front lines. I've been thinking about switching my career goals for the past while, so I understand." There were many ways to serve, including among the military, so she had faith that Hector would find his place.

"Up for a race? That's my middle name." She grinned and moved towards one of the speeder bikes. before hopping on it. "I've been waiting for these to get delivered for weeks!"

[Hector Thymes]

“It doesn’t really matter... after all I did sign up during a war. It’s part of the job... I just need to hit the firing range more often and improve some of my other skills. I don’t want to be the one to get other’s killed...” Hector trailed off. That mission he was on wasn’t a perfect one, he knew some of his team were shot, killed, or injured. He also knew that some were injured because of him. He wanted to do better next time. He wanted to be able to hold his ground, just like the others.

“Sorry about that... yes, let’s race.” Hector moved to the pits and found another of the new speeders, one he had recently did some work on himself. He was eager to try it out, and now that he had a racing partner, he would also have the chance to see how fast they can really go.

Helmet on his head, he pulled the bike up to the track next to Anne’s. He asked one of the other pit workers to drop the flag for them.

“So, how man laps? Five? Ten?”

[Anne Brocar'do]

"If you need any help, let me know. I've been a soldier for most of my life, so it's second nature to me. And finding the right kind of weapon for you will probably help a lot." Anne always reasoned in such terms and she bet that with training, Hector would do better. After all, they all had to start somewhere, and everyone became better with further practice!

As they were ready to go, the brunette put her helmet on and flashed a grin to her racing partner. "Five laps so we can get a first idea of these new ones, and then ten if they're as good as we were told?"

[Hector Thymes]

“Sounds like a plan.” Hector replied, lowering the visor.

The engine beneath Hecor purred to life as he reved the engine and found a comfortable spot on the seat. His heart was beating like crazy, it always did when he was about to start a race. The speed, the competition, it was what he lived for most days. Beside him, he glimpsed Anne’s body as she took got into position, reminding himself hard that she had a boyfriend.

The flag was dropped and the bikes took off. All of Hector’s attention was on the bike, the course and speed. They were new after all, and like Anne said they wouldn’t know what they were capable of until they got them going. Changing gears, he pushed his bike a head of Anne’s as they neared the first curve.

OOC: not sure how long you want the race to go on for, or how you want to rp it.

[Anne Brocar'do]

Anne loved a good race and it had been a while since she had done one. The seat was comfortable, though the curve of the bike wasn't the best she had sit on. She hoped that the rest of the specs would make up for this.

As the flag was dropped, she took off without hesitation. The bike was nervous, showing its novelty. The direction was good but a little bit off she thought after the first curve. Hector - showing he was a good competitor! - was sometimes ahead of her, sometimes a bit behind. They were on even ground, which made things entertaining.

At the fourth lap, she thought that the engine made a weird noise, but she kept going, as they only had one more lap before they took a break to decide whether they carried on further.

OOC - I'm completely winging it!

[Hector Thymes]

The two of them were neck in neck most of the race, at times Hector glanced around to see where Anne was, only to have her sneak by and pass him. He was impressed at her skill, and flaunted his whenever he could. The bikes, which was what they were testing proved reliable, if only needing to be warn in a bit.

Approaching the last lap, Hector wanted to put the bike to it’s absolute limit. Gearing up, the cadet increased the speed to it’s maximum. He wanted to see how it would handle and how fast it could really go.

Anne was in the distance, but he was closing the gape fast. The bike, however chose that time to let out a putt, sputter and just as Hector was ready to pass Anne for the win, his bike took a wild turn to the right.

“Frack.” Hector swore as he let go of the gas and tried to regain control of the bike. It circled around and around as he pressed the breaks harder, until finally it kicked him off and he went tumbling to the ground. Thankfully, Hector knew how to fall and had placed his arms up around his head and rolled.

He waited until he stopped moving before opening his eyes and glancing up. His bike was a few dozen yards away on it’s side. The crew who had been watching the race were coming over to him and to the bike, all asking if he was alright.

“Yeah, yeah, i’m fine.” Hector replied. “It sort of went wild there when I pushed it to it’s maximum speed...” He was thinking now, the race temporarily forgotten as he tired to figure out how to fix the problem.

[Anne Brocar'do]

Anne heard Hector closing in on her in the final lap, and she kept pushing her bike to win the race. She was stubborn and had a taste for winning. That was when she saw him catch up with her right before his bike had issues.

Not thinking about the race anymore, she hit the brakes to stop. The bike didn't cooperate right away, and took a weird turn before stopping at once, throwing her off balance. She managed to climb off of it, as soon as it had stopped, and she rushed to check on her racing partner.

"Hey! You okay?" She asked as soon as she had removed her helmet, when catching up with the crew. "Mine went weird in the last lap, but stayed okay until I tried to stop it." She wasn't a stellar mechanics, so she couldn't guess exactly what it was. "Glad you're fine. I think there's something up with these new bikes for sure."

[Hector Thymes]

“Yeah, i’m fine. A few scratches and bruises, but that’s the life of a test driver, right?” Hector said, removing his helmet and giving Anne a cherry grin. He rubbed the back of his head with his hand, as the problems with the new bike came crashing down on him. This wasn’t good, they would need to be re-adjusted for sure, taken apart and put back together, maybe someone missed a part?

His mind was already troubleshooting possibilities as he walked over to his bike, despite a few dents, it was still in one piece. “Bonus for it not exploding.” He added, trying to lighten the mood around him.

“You said your’s had problems too?” Hector asked, allowing the crew to take his back to the pit, as he and Anne walked back to her’s. “Did you notice anything else?”

[Anne Brocar'do]

"True." Being specialized in vehicle units, including as a test driver, Anne knew too well how it could be. Yet, brand new bikes like these shouldn't have been delivered with so much trouble at hand, especially so dangerous.

"I think mine wasn't far from exploding at some point. Definitely smelled like burn." She remarked, processing what had happened now that she knew that Hector was okay.

"The engine made some weird noises and I think the brakes are in bad shape after my hasty stop, though they are brand new. And the direction was a little off since the start of the race."

[Hector Thymes]

“Some of it could be explained by a few lose bolts... maybe.” Hector said, not wanting to draw too much conclusions so soon. Like a doctor in an autotopsy, he’d have to dissect the bikes to figure out what made them flaw so much. Still, loose bolts was a pretty loose theory, it wouldn’t explain the burning Anne smelled.

“Hey over here you two!” Came a voice from one of the other mechanics mulling over Hector’s bike. The Cadet took Anne’s and rolled it over to the others.

“What’s up?” Hector asked entering the circle. Someone raised a rubber tube up to him, as well as a few bit parts. They were old, rusted, and worn through. Something you’d fine on a bike twenty to thirty years old, not brand new.

“Think we found your problem.” Another mechanic said.

“Crappy parts.” Hector mused and crouched down on his bike. Outside the bikes look great, clean and shinny, but as the pit crew began to take a few of the top layers apart, they discovered a number of corners that had been cut, including top line parts. Hector looked up to Anne. “I think the Republic just got screwed on these bikes.”

[Anne Brocar'do]

When they were called out, Anne went to see, along with Hector. When they were shown the parts, she shook her head, knowing that these parts weren't brand new, not one little bit at that. It infuriated her that the Republic had been equipped with frelling messed up parts.

"No kidding." She could tell that inside, the bikes were a mess. It already was a miracle that nothing worse than what Hector had gone through, happened.

"This needs to be reported. All the bikes from this shipment have to be checked up. Once all data is gathered, I am certain that the NRIS will want to check on this."