maskormenace | Capsule 002 💊 (Video)

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Capsule 002 💊 (Video)

[Good morning Nonah/Heropa/De Chima/etc. residents. Hope you've been enjoying it, because you'll need something to buffer here. Kaneda's already outside, lounging on his bike with his feet kicked up, hands behind his head and looking at the sky. Kaneda, you couldn't look more bored if you tried.]

So I guess I'm supposed to give you guys traffic updates or something. And you know me--I've got a burning desire to be an upstanding citizen.

[He turns his communicator about 30 degrees to the left, showing a patch of empty road that his bike was parked next to. Insert the cliche tumbleweed for some added aesthetic.]

Whooooooo-oooo! Brutal out there, guys! Stay safe!

[Okay, even he can't hide his smirk anymore.]

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[Ugh.]

Are you sure?

De Chima streets aren't going to be as safe as your little post there.

De Chima?

[A toss of his hair.]

I know my way around those streets.

[Mostly, anyway.]

Not nearly as well as I do.

[Streets, sidewalks, rooftops. Literally everywhere she can fit.]

Sounds like a challenge to me.

[C'mon, Gogo, leave him in the dust. He wants to see this confidence in action.

And he's itching for some competition.]

You mean you're not here yet? How is that in any way a challenge?

[Oh she plans to. She is way too wired right now.]

[Oh no, he likes your attitude, girl.

Snapping his goggles on, he slides back into his seat and hits the buttons on his interface, the handles practically bouncing up into his hands.

From there, the feed clicks off, because there's no sense in keeping it on while driving PETER JASON QUILL.

But when he gets to De Chima, he skids to a stop, looking around for any sign of the mysterious racer woman. Because...well, she's good at getting his attention.]

[If he wasn't already in De Chima, then there were only two ways he could get there. Either the porter or the main highway entrance. She's betting the porter, if he has any intention of racing her today.

So she camps herself outside the porter building; sitting on a rail across the street, ignoring the looks from the natives walking past. She had a drink in hand, the straw bent under the visor, and casually sips while she waits.

She honestly expects Kaneda to recognize her once he sees her. He can't be that oblivious.]

[It's rude to drive out of a building, right? Right. And he wants to make a good first impression. Not that...a guy in bright traffic cone orange is any less subtle.

He stumbles out, dusting off his jacket as he walks his way out, tugging on his gloves to make sure they're good and on.

And..well, even Kaneda can spot her out in the open.]

Hey!

[Cue him hurrying over, almost walking straight into traffic to do it. NEVER STAND BETWEEN KANEDA AND THE OTHER SIDE OF THE ROAD, CARS.]

You came to meet me and everything, huh.

[The flat sound of drawing on a nearly empty drink.]

Happened to be around.

[There is so much judgment at him right now. What a loser, walking out into traffic like that. She's wondering if this was a good idea. Sure, he SAID he's a racer, and definitely had the interest when they met a couple weeks ago, but...no one could be this dumb.

Her discs are locked together against her back, so she's sitting here without any sort of visible transportation either.]

I hope you're not planning on running this race.

[Wow okay in his defense if you saw you, you'd do the same thing.]

Lucky I caught you, then.

His hand moves quickly to the bar she's leaning against, the other held up, forefinger and thumb put together.]

Noooooot quite.

[He snaps his fingers, and the bike materializes right on the road, perfectly parked and everything.]

Easier to carry this way, you know?

[Well shit, she's actually impressed. That's a pretty handy power.

She hops off the rail, consequently further away from Kaneda, and tosses her cup in the trash. Still not making any move to reveal any kind of bike of her own.]

Good. Would you like a head start, Kaneda?

[It's his favourite one, as a matter of fact. But when she moves, so does he, walking over to his bike and gripping one of the handlebars.

Although...he takes a look around, wondering just where her bike is.

There weren't any in sight.]

Head start?

[You'd think you'd asked him to spawn a second head.]

Handicapping me already? That's cold, babe.

First off: not your babe. Second? Don't say I didn't give you a chance.

[She'd been practicing fast deploy on the magnets, and in a matter of seconds the single disc on her back became two wheels on the ground, Gogo levitating between them with an ease that shouldn't be possible. Like she lives on these magnets more often than not.

She throws him a salute and kicks off in a tight circle to dash down the street, weaving between traffic. She stays slow enough to give him the opportunity to keep sight of her, at least.]

[He's about to respond with something sassy, maybe a one liner. But before he can even start the sentence, the disc flies off her back and onto her feet, eyes snapping wide under those goggles.

Something told him that this wasn't just a bike race.]

[And with that salute, she's off making a beeline down the street.

Just like that.

Okay, OKAY that was pretty cool. (And hot. Temperatures fluctuating everywhere).]

[Okay, hormones back to stable levels. He's got a race to win.

With a single flip of a switch and his feet kicking up, the green electricity jolts around his bike's wheels as they burn rubber beneath him, immediately taking off in her direction.

Now this is what he could get into--his bike picks up speed as he gets closer to her, angling his turns at just the right moment to keep his speed as he drifts. She was good--really good.

With a rev of his handles, he picks up speed, weaving in and out of the cars like nothing, finally gaining some ground on her.]

[She takes a corner on an arc, her momentum driving her partway up a wall, and she twists so she's skating backwards, taking the chance to see how far back he is.

She pleasantly surprised to see him already gaining ground. Several drivers were shaking fists out their windows at them for weaving in amongst them, and she grins behind her visor. He wasn't just talk.

This was going to be fun.

Kicking back down to the street, facing forward again, she readies the magnets on her wrist armor. She's going to need some tight maneuvering to keep ahead of that bike without pushing herself to her limit.

At least the route is readily straight forward. It won't be hard for Kaneda to pick up that she's sticking to the main road through the city. She doesn't have much of a path in mind, but then what kind of street racers would they be if they were defined by lines?]

[She's not the only one impressed. While not a bike, what she had...dare he say? Was just as good. And you're talking to the number one bike fanboy here. All that talk she put on earlier was just as legit, and as he makes another turn to follow, his bike lights trail along after him like the tail end of a kite.

Winning or not, this was a nice change of pace from the usual. Not that he would give her an easy time. Kicking his speed a little more, his turns are a little haphazard, but Kaneda seems unphased by it as he weaves around a car to keep pace.

Either way, he certainly won't turn down the main highway of the city--it had the most action, and the least turns. All the better to really judge your speed.

Give him your best, Gogo.]

[Asking for her best is like asking for trouble.

He keeps up with her though, and she whoops as she cuts around a bus at the sheer thrill of racing someone who can't outpace her in seconds without trying. She likes Kid Flash, she really does, but this? This is nice. She understands his own excitement.

When she comes back into view on the other side of the bus, two more smaller wheels had detached from the face of the larger, and now hovered in place over her wrists. She tilts her head to glance at Kaneda over her shoulder and swerves towards a four wheeler waiting to turn. At the last second she twists so her body is nearly horizontal, one wrist to the ground for balance, and slides under the truck with a wave to him.

Catch me, she taunts wordlessly.]

[Well, Kaneda is trouble, so it all works out.

He watches her, almost hypnotized by the way she swerves around that bus, unable to keep that smile off his face. Sure, she was outspeeding him, but he wasn't too prideful to see that she had skill. And a girl with skill was a girl he DEFINITELY wanted to know. The bus comes up on his turn now, leaning to the side to swerve in the same pattern she had.

His bike controls like a dream to him, and he can almost feel his ankles brushing against the pavement at the turn. This was usually the part where HE left the others in the dust.

Swerving around to the bus's front, he's able to just catch a glimpse of her leaning forward, forward enough to just barely brush under the frame of that truck. Oh you sly devil.

Well. He can play this game too. Kaneda had an idea, one he certainly hadn't tested, but that wasn't in Kaneda's nature anyway. You either did it and wiped out, or you did it and kept going. And he had a feeling he could do this one. Shifting it to auto-drive, he inches up on the back of his seat, waiting for the right moment...

Just like on that Clown's bike.

He leaps, snapping his fingers a second after that, landing on the hood of the car. The bike itself had disappeared as he vaults over the back of the truck (a little ungracefully, snapping his fingers once he's clear to land right where he was. The only difference being the truck was behind him now. And the driver maybe having a bit of cardiac arrest. Whoops.

He'll just look ahead to where she's at, giving a two fingered salute.]

[She'd slowed to watch him, then stopped for a breather as he just vaults over the truck. Sort of.

Okay, it was the least graceful thing she's ever seen, but it was effective and just a little badass. Putting a convenient power to interesting use. At least he got a good one. Unlike her.

Not now. She shakes her head sharply to keep her thoughts clear.

Impressed, Gogo starts moving again, circling tightly to build momentum before changing direction to run at him instead of where she was going. Like a game of chicken, except at the last moment she kicks off the ground, sets her hands on his shoulders and uses him to propel the rest of the way over.

Do you hear that laughter? Bright and carefree.]

[The moment she starts that game of chicken, his eyes harden, competition practically brimming the edges of them. This was his turf--his stubbornness and hard headed nature often made him win. And from the looks of it, she felt the same way, as she makes a beeline for him.

He doesn't shift--not now, not ever.

But the crash doesn't come, and she didn't swerve. No, she vaults over his head, feeling that hand on his shoulder, and the sheer power and force that came with it. A brief exchange, but one Kaneda wouldn't forget on his life. His bike immediately turning sideways to break, green electricity rocketing along the pavement.

And her laughter. Man, what he'd do to hear that again. It pretty much shook him to the core, and almost dazed him for a moment. His whole time in this city was 'meh' at best. But then? He felt better than he ever did back home in Neo Tokyo. It's hard not to echo that laughter, for the first time not a facade to hide the turmoil going on in his brain.

This was something he could get behind. His boots remove themselves from the pavement, balancing back on the bike's wheels.]

NOT BAD!!

[Better than 'not bad'. It was amazing.]

My turn.

[That hand turns the handlebars again, bike springing to life as he bikes towards her, making a u-turn around her, the tail light trailing around her like a ribbon. His hand reaches out, tapping her shoulder gently as he leans in, mouthing the word 'tag' before kicking his engine, speeding off ahead.

The main roads were fun, but he wanted to do a little exploring too. And what better way than a game of tag?

[She keeps still as he veers around her, momentarily distracted by the tail lights. Almost like she could reach out and touch them.

Which, looked familiar...

Before she catches that train of thought, he's leaning in, and she forgets about what she'd been trying to remember as the challenge renews. She doesn't give him much of a headstart. Too much respect to insult his ability like that. Just whatever ground he gains as she has to accelerate to chase him.

The streets get narrower, the turns tighter, as they head downtown. Game on.]

[There's a small glance in his rearview mirror, curious to see if she'd follow. A large part of him said yes, because any racer worth her salt would. And he had no reason to doubt her abilities after that game of chicken.

Sure enough, she's there, tailing him in and out of the smaller streets, his turns sharp and calculated. It's a little hard not to take in the sights, though. De Chima had a lot to offer that wasn't found in Nonah. And he might be taking roads based on sheer curiosity.

Sightseeing, the racer way.

A road comes up, and he holds out a hand to wag it twice to the right with two finger salute before he speeds up, taking down that lane.]

[Sorry dude, but she's not going to just chase you, here. This is her territory and you're playing a game she knows very well.

She dashes past the street he turns down and follows the next curve. There's an alley she cuts down several yards later that gives her a ramp to get to the roofs of the shops and apartments.

The buildings here aren't close enough yet to make a good running ground, but with her momentum she can easily leap from roof to roof, working her way steadily back to where she knows Kaneda will inevitably head.]

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