[center][h2][color=fff200]Sunday August 22nd, 2094 Moa Tempest, Hawaii[/color][/h2] [h3]Race[/h3][/center] Paul had spent the evening in frustration as he went over his data from qualifying. He compared his lap to Dorian’s. He rewatched the videos from qualifying. He worked with Carmella, his race engineer, to review the ship's setup. He couldn’t pinpoint anything in particular that Dorian did better than he did. He had no idea why he was performing so much slower than Dorian. It was frustrating him to no end. Paul struggled to sleep. He kept tossing and turning. He had stayed up late using the simulator. He practiced with the ELS and overtaking in the tunnel sections. Paul was up early the next day. He was tired and cranky. He was in a foul mood. Paul didn’t want to lay the blame for his lack of performance in Hawaii on anyone else. He could blame his poor performance in Germany on the ship setup that Dorian had talked him into. He knew that Cavan and the team had rebuilt the ship. Dorian had taken P3 in qualifying and he had taken P9. Paul was younger and spent just as much time on his fitness and in the simulator as Dorian if not more. How was Dorian outperforming him? Paul tried to not take his mood out on anyone else. He retreated to the pilot’s ready room and tried to meditate and calm down. He was really struggling mentally about what happened during qualifying. [color=fff200][i]Why was it that every time Dorian was doing well he seemed to do poorly? Why couldn’t they both get on the podium together[/i][/color]. The press had been particularly vicious about his performance during the qualifying race. Paul knew his head was not in the right headspace and he was feeling the pressure to perform well. He tried to push it all away and stay in the moment but he was failing. Then it was time to start. Paul had gone through his prerace ritual and checklist with Carmella. He felt jittery and on edge. He could feel the adrenaline rushing through him as he hit the throttle as the race started. Paul just couldn’t seem to get into the rhythm of the race. He felt like he was having to force the ship into submission. It was not the effortless dance it had been at Spa where he had slipped through the field with ease making his way towards the front of the pack. Paul was passed by Hamid and Nora. His performance seemed to get worse as the race went on. Paul had cursed up a storm when Hamid passed him. He had tried to hold Nora Kelly but she managed to get past him as well. In the end Paul had slid down to finish in P11. Paul had pulled his ship back into the paddock. He had climbed out the ship and for once said nothing. He had retreated to the pilot’s ready room where he pulled his helmet off and threw it across the room. He cursed up a streak in very colorful language where he had some privacy. Paul felt like slugging something. He settled for punching the throw pillows on the couch. It was not nearly as satisfying as throwing his helmet had been. Once he had calmed down. He took a quick shower and changed before heading over to the Delta Hyper set. [hr] [color=gold][center][h1][i][b]DELTΔ HYPER[/b][/i][/h1][/center][/color] [color=gold][center][h2][i][b]Episode Twelve: Hot Like Lava[/b][/i][/h2][/center][/color] [hr] Paul showed up at his Delta Hyper interview with his hair wet and darker with the water in it. He was wearing sneakers, jeans, and a team polo shirt. He took a seat on the Delta Hyper couch and gave Aurora his standard charming smile. [color=ed1c24][quote]Aurora: "Paul, it just didn't play out the way you expected! Despite a solid platform, how did the positions slip?"[/quote][/color] Paul’s expression turned serious with hints of anger in his posture. His voice was gruff as he answered. [color=fff200]Paul: “It is not what I had hoped for. I honestly have no idea why I ended up where I did. We all have an off race every once in a while. This was not my race. As I said before I can’t win them all. You can damn well bet I am thinking about nothing but how to change this in the next race.” [/color] Paul didn’t wait for Aurora’s response or anyone’s dismissal signal. He simply stood up, pulled off the microphone that they had clipped to his polo shirt shirt and left. He didn’t yell, scream, or stomp but the tension in his body and the clenched fists combined with him grinding his teeth all pointed to a simmering explosion waiting to happen. [hr] [center][h1][color=fff200][b]Social Media[/b][/color][/h1][/center] [center][color=fff200][b]Team Valkyrie AGR: @TeamValkyrie[/b] [/color][/center] [center][color=fff200]Help us congratulate pilot Dorian Hornfleur on his podium win in Hawaii! Paul Mulder finished in P11.[/color][/center] [color=fff200]HydrofoilHater[/color] Another poor performance from Paul Mulder while Dorian Hornfleur finished in P1. So much variance from the same team. What is going on with Mulder? [color=fff200]ThrusterJester:[/color]@HydrofoilHater 100% agree with you. Doesn’t make sense. They have the same ship and Dorian took first place in the race and Paul didn’t even break the top ten to bring in points. What’s wrong with that picture? [color=fff200]QuantumQuokka:[/color]Mulder always seems to choke every other race. [color=fff200]Bertha:[/color]Mulder fails again. [color=fff200]ValkyrieFan56:[/color]Good for Dorian Hornfleur! Showing he still has it even if he is retiring at the end of the year. [color=fff200]Nana2050:[/color]I don’t understand why Paul Mulder didn’t do better. [color=fff200]MulderMuse:[/color]Paul Mulder is still my favorite. [color=fff200]Paulmulder4eva:[/color]@MulderMuse Paul is still my favorite too. He could always turn to modeling if racing doesn’t work out. [color=fff200]RumorMill:[/color]They had the same ship setup so how did Mulder end up in P11? [color=fff200]DantheMan:[/color] Obviously it was pilot error of some sort. The team hasn’t announced there were any technical issues. [color=fff200]RumorMill:[/color] Heard that Paul choked and failed to use his ELS efficiently. [color=fff200]LegacyStan94:[/color]That makes sense for what we saw on the track. You would think he had enough races behind him not to choke by now. [hr] [@FourtyTwo] [b][center][h3][code]Saturday 20/8/2094 21:32 - To Paul Mulder (Belgian Waffle) [Batt: 69%][/code][/h3][/center][/b] [color=fff200][b]Wedge[/b][/color] Yoo, just wanted to check in with you as we're team-mates next year! Got a quick question- how the fuck is Dorian still that fast despite being 40? Just checking, he isn't a cyborg is he, cos I'm gonna need to adjust to that ship? Also, pls make sure you ask the canteen to stock schnitzel, I've becoming uncannily addicted for it in my protein allocation while in Lucerne after the Nürburgring interviews, thanks :) [s](I'll find something better than Hersheys to bribe them with because I know you hate it and think it's an affront to God despite it being the best thing on Earth)[/s] [b][center][h3][code]Saturday 20/8/2094 22:02 - To Wedge (BBQ NUT) [Batt: 54%][/code][/h3][/center][/b] [color=fff200][b]Paul [/b][/color] Dorian is not a cyborg. He has fewer enhancements that most pilots. You will adjust to the ship easier than you think. Hershey is a foul word in Belgium! I am glad you understand this. Think Belgian Chocolate! Try Godiva is pretty easy to get ahold of. As for Schnitzel, all you need to do is tell Chef Jacques what you want. He will be sure to run it past the nutritionist and make it for you. [hider= Team Valkyrie Characters] https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1zrLx5XUgYiVm6KjTpFTWZtJvXc0MX77enkLzINHujKw/edit?gid=0#gid=0 [/hider]