The highlight would be watching Lily’s inevitable struggle.
Track staff strapped her in and finished the safety checks. She was ready almost at once.
Khar did not notice he had leaned forward, elbows on his knees, eyes fixed on her.
Lily’s launch was decisive. Perhaps not as explosive as his, but her rhythm on the opening straight was good.
Then came the first corner.
Instead of braking, the vehicle accelerated.
She tried to correct.
The car hit the barrier and spun.
The gravity fields scrubbed the speed at once, but even so the forces slamming into her body must have been immense.
Ice terror seized Khar.
For a heartbeat his entire frame locked as his senses went into overdrive, capturing every flicker of the impact and hyper-focusing on the shape rattling in the driver’s seat. He was moreshaken than he had ever been in any Legion brawl or battle beyond.
Had it simply been too long since real conflict? Or was his body rebelling because he had taken part in such an unequal contest?
He did not know.
He vaulted the railing in a single motion, landed in a bloom of dust, and sprinted across the sand toward the now-silent vehicle, every muscle fiber singing.
He reached the door first, far ahead of the techs, only for Lily to push it open from the inside, almost knocking him over.
“Oh, Khar, sorry. I didn’t see you there.”
People did not simply overlook Khar. Not with his size and the gravity he cast over any space.
But Lily was the exception to every rule.
His gaze swept her body, searching for blood, bruises, any sign of injury. Finding nothing, he let out the breath he had not realized he was holding.
“What happened? You drove straight into the wall.”
Before he could continue, Karora and the technicians reached them and swarmed around Lily like a worried insect-hive around its queen.
Lily looked more embarrassed than flattered. She ignored Khar’s question and spoke directly to their guide.
“Karora, I didn’t damage anything, did I?”
Surprise flashed across the Dak’ri’s face. Of course Lily was fine. That was what the gravity fields were for, though even with all precautions the forces were harsh on most bodies.
“No, Lily, do not worry. No damage. And if there had been, our insurance would have covered it.”
Relief softened Lily’s features, then she gave Karora a hopeful look from beneath lowered lashes.
“In that case… could I try again?”
“But of course. As long as you are sure you are alright.”
After assuring Karora that she was being overprotective, which Khar absolutely did not agree with, Lily returned to the tuning booth while they prepared a new vehicle for her. With the sim-cowl over her head, she gestured decisively.
“Can we swap the pedals? Throttle on the left, brake on the right? It is hard to drive opposite from what I am used to. When I slid, I stepped on the throttle instead of the brake.”
