Pilatus

Sol City [Modern Slice of Life] . (CHAPTER ONE COMPLETED!) . ARCHIVED

@RoccanIronclad

I think you meant Saturday afternoon in your post. That is unless Vika stayed another day.



@PrinceAlexus

Vika's header also reads Sunday afternoon.

Sol City [Modern Slice of Life] . (CHAPTER ONE COMPLETED!) . ARCHIVED

Also still around even though you didn't tag me.

y tho

@Mattchstick

@Mattchstick

There ya go, buddy

Sol City [Modern Slice of Life] . (CHAPTER ONE COMPLETED!) . ARCHIVED

Joel Nicolosi

Joel watched Tommy approaching the hauler with a clear scene of disgust on his face. He knew what the man was doing and he didn’t like it, but there was nothing he could do about it. Tommy was playing on the singular button he knew he could push. Joel’s competitiveness was near poisonous, almost suicidal. He zipped up his racing suit with a deathlike glare. Lou, standing alongside with Joel’s dad gave the young mechanic a confident grin and a fist bump. Joel headed down the stairs to a scene of whoops and hollers from the rest of the crew enough to draw the attention of their more noble English morning guests. Joel glanced at them defiantly, grabbed his helmet and went out to meet Tommy.

Seeing Joel approach was the exact outcome for which Tommy had hoped. As a man that led sports teams his entire life, several to championship fame, he knew what motivated men. Joel was a little bit harder case as he’d never participated in anything that built comradery or team spirit. He had to be motivated by other means. Now we’re in for a show. He thought. Tommy smiled broadly inside his helmet as he came to a stop and peeled the window back. “What’s wrong buddy?” He said sheepishly and taking his helmet off.

“You tell her to keep that thing in the air.” Joel said darkly and shoved the radio headset in Tommy’s face. He had a murderous look that Tommy enjoyed immensely. This was a man ready for battle. Mission accomplished.

Tommy climbed out and put on the headset as he switched with Joel. He started towards the English delegation, but not before Joel dumped the clutch and covered them all in tire smoke and exhaust blast. Another prideful chorus went up from the crew as they watched the car head back out to the course after Joel’s little display in foreign relations. Tommy coughed and waved away the heavy white air that covered the group with a diplomatic chuckle. He was trying to restrain a smile as he spoke to Maxmallion. “Your grand-daughter is certainly talented my friend,” He glanced back as the smoke cleared seeing nothing but a red flash moving out over the field. “My partner wants to give it a go now.” He jumped on the radio and called the tower.

Joel didn’t need to check the readouts on the display. He knew when the car felt right. It was perfect. There was not a nut, a bolt, a spring, a valve, a rod or any other part of the car that he had not handled personally. He knew every single inch of the chassis and what it was capable of. Tommy just wasn’t up to the job. Either that or he wasn’t trying on purpose. Either way, he knew he could win. He could feel it in his gut. It crossed his mind briefly that she would probably be faster on the second run, having had extra practice and lighter on fuel, but he didn’t care. His whole life he’d lived for moments like these. Sometimes it came a quarter mile at a time, other times it was a streetfight that only lasted a few moments. This was what it was like to be alive.

“By God he’s already got it in the wind,” Joel’s dad said. He grinned with pride as he watched through a pair of binoculars. Joel thundered down the taxiway wide open towards the starting mark. Marlin’s plane swooped down with its characteristic howl right behind him as she headed for the first gate. Her form was on, sharper than before. Wings level, smoke out, she hit her first break-turn as soon as Joel’s brake lights lit up.

Joel slammed through the gears, each one launching the revs higher as he hit the first turn. There was never a half movement or a gentle arch. Every turn, every input on the controls was for maximum possible effect. When his foot left the brake it immediately put the accelerator on the floor, no in-between. He could feel the grip on the verge of sliding the tail. He was on the edge. The grass of the infield came up and was gone again in a flash. Gear, gear, gear until he was back into final. Another turn, repeat. The howl of wind came up over the car against the scream of the engine and was gone again. Hard turn, back in the throttle. Push!

The two courses crossed paths in the “center” of the apportioned raceway. A photographer would have grabbed a golden moment in time as Marlin crossed over Joel in knife-edge flight. A spurt of fire blasted from his exhaust as her prop turned in fury. He could hear her flash overhead. They broke away from each other in less than a half a second.

Joel sailed off the final turn feeling the rear end come around, but he stayed in it kicking up a small tuft of grass where the rumble strip ended. The finish line was directly ahead along with Marlin’s last gate arrayed in the classical checker pattern. She wasn’t there, but he could hear her, approaching fast and from behind. He didn’t look in the mirror. It was a drag race now. Same as all those times in high school. He thought. His grip on the wheel tightened to white knuckles under his gloves. Closer, closer, the line was nearly there. He could feel his pulse pounding through every ounce of blood in his body. She was right on his tail, lower this time than when she raced Tommy, getting every extra ounce of height for speed she could possibly muster. They blasted over the line and it sounded like her prop was right over his head before it peeled away.

“Hoooooly shit man!” Tommy shouted over the radio. “You got her by a nose!”

Joel exhaled what felt like ten gallons of air and sank into the seat as the car decelerated. He realized immediately that Tommy had indeed given it a hell of a go. She was definitely fast. His heartbeat was likely visible beneath his driving suit as he felt the adrenaline pouring away in buckets. He rolled up to their temporary paddock and spun a couple of donuts, sending the smelly white smoke cloud over everyone for a second time. He really poured it on this time.

“Damn son! I think you are made of hellfire!” One of Tommy’s teammates said hauling Joel out of the car. He barely had time to get his helmet off before he was mauled.

With the assembled celebration, it felt like he’d won the Indy 500. He brushed a mass of sweaty hair out of his face and looked up in time to see Marlin landing. Then he saw her big mouthed aunt standing there looking dejected. He couldn’t help himself: “Hey!” He shouted with about zero eloquence, “We’ll take our money, now.”

@PrinceAlexus

Sol City [Modern Slice of Life] . (CHAPTER ONE COMPLETED!) . ARCHIVED

@Mattchstick

Makes total sense to me. You can have him out there as a "spectator" of sorts, but yes, it would be a requirement for our little event.

Sol City [Modern Slice of Life] . (CHAPTER ONE COMPLETED!) . ARCHIVED

Joel Nicolosi

Joel paid no mind to Marinalia’s taunts. He’d been in enough of these situations to know there was no bragging until everything was said and done. Losing was bad enough, but losing and having to eat your words afterwards was even worse. He just let her run her mouth, same as he’d done with countless others through the years. What he could not tolerate however, was her pushy aunt inserting herself into the conversation and the fact that she knew things about his pride and joy that Tommy had apparently disclosed. His patience with the entire situation began to boil when she referred to the car as a “machine” like it was some piece of factory equipment. “Let me tell you somethin’ lady,” He said curtly. “I don’t give a flying fu-“

Tommy loudly clapped his hands together to cut Joel off and held them up in an attempt to clear the air visually as much as verbally. “It’s fine, we’re good.” He spoke with finality, “It was my idea, so I’ll drive.” Things were going almost exactly as he planned if he could just keep Joel from shooting his mouth off. At this point, whether or not he won or lost was inconsequential. Unlike his counterpart, his mind was on the bigger picture. He knew his guests weren’t so much concerned with the outcome as much as they could see that their money was going towards a viable candidate to win the race. All he had to do was try to keep up with Marinalia and post a respectable time. Just drive like she wasn’t even there. That was all they needed. If he even managed to pull out a victory that was even better. He knew they already believed she’d win though he wasn’t exactly sure how it was going to go down. In their numerous meetings and correspondence, he’d trusted them to come up with an aircraft that would make for an even match.

Joel caught a whiff of whatever coffee-themed travesty it was that Marinalia was drinking and coughed in disgust at the overly sweet smell. He shook his head and turned to unplug the diagnostic equipment from the car. Before the aunt or anyone else could say anything else he reached up and swiped a command on his phone that jacked the music up several more decibels. He took his helmet, the tablet and its accompanying cords out of the car without a word and proceeded to the top of the hauler where the regular crew-chief seating was set up. He sat down and put on a headset to listen to the ATC and their own crew-radio. From the top of the truck he had an expansive view of the whole course and he watched as Tommy headed out swinging the wheel back and forth to warm up the tires.

@PrinceAlexus

Sol City [Modern Slice of Life] . (CHAPTER ONE COMPLETED!) . ARCHIVED

Joel Nicolosi

So is this your Mona Lisa then?

“Indeed it is,” Joel said. There was palpable reverence in his tone as he leaned against it, looking down and running his hand along the window channel. His fingers glided smoothly over the polished paint. He was glad she got to see it after their conversation from the previous night if nothing other than just to prove he wasn’t completely full of it. “Bought it used when I was in high school, bone stock,” He said. “Took me nearly ten years to get it this far.” He crossed his arms and looked back at her ensemble, “Glad you got your wings back though, that office stuff didn’t suit you.” He looked over at Tommy again who was shaking hands and looking official and narrowed his glance slightly.

He smirked a little at her offer to race, “Yeah, maybe we can line up them up later,” He said with a shrug, “But I don’t race for free.” It was a line he used since high school, when he first earned a reputation for being fast on streets of Sol City. It weeded out the chaff. Racing cost money and he didn’t waste his time on those who were looking for pride or to simply see who was faster.

Tommy approached at a light jog, rubbing his hands together. Joel’s bullshit detector immediately pegged. The man was better at being a salesman than he ever was at being a football player. “You ready?” He said to Joel. He gave Marlin a once-over and grinned.

“Ready for what?” Joel said defensively. He kept his arms crossed.

“We’re going to have a friendly little competition in motorsport” Tommy said slyly.

“Who’s ‘we’?” Joel shot back.

“You and Miss Marinalia here,” Being silver-tongued as ever, he pronounced her name perfectly. “If you haven’t noticed these pylons have been set up in a specific pattern,” He said, “She’ll take off and fly the air-race course while you drive our regular road-course, first one across their respective finish line wins.”

“Well that’s about the stupidest thing I ever heard” Joel said flatly.

“Don’t be difficult, Joel” Tommy replied. He knew Joel’s moods well.

“I’m not being difficult,” Joel said, “I’m just not doing it.” At this point he didn’t care that she was standing right there watching them bicker. It was also evident that the rest of the crew had noticed the conversation growing more heated in tone in spite of the blaring music. Joel looked at the others that arrived on the helicopter and the oddball that showed up late in a rental car and asked the obvious question: “They got any money?”

Tommy attempted to grab Joel by the arm and lead him away to have the rest of the conversation elsewhere, but Joel childishly planted his feet and refused to move. Tommy leaned in to Joel's ear, “What do you think?” He growled.

Joel very nonchalantly reached into the car and took out Tommy’s helmet and shoved it firmly into the man’s chest. “I think you’re driving.”

@PrinceAlexus

Sol City [Modern Slice of Life] . (CHAPTER ONE COMPLETED!) . ARCHIVED

Just to be sure a time skip has happened or is it in progress?

@Robo27

Yes.

time skip warning

Time skip is now active.

You are free to use any time from after party to lunch time. The ball will be closing. You are free to carry on at any other venues and dance, drink and party the night away.

Due to the wide range of times potentially. Please just tag your posts so people know when you are posting in.

Questions and comments can be directed @PrinceAlexus and myself here in the OOC or PM. Gripes and complaints can just go straight to Alexus.

Sol City [Modern Slice of Life] . (CHAPTER ONE COMPLETED!) . ARCHIVED

Joel Nicolosi

Music from the hauler’s ample sound-system continued to play and sitting in the car Joel paid no mind to the sound of helicopter rotors. They were at an airport after all. In front of him there was a small tablet mounted on the dash. His hands lightly held the steering wheel while thumbs moved over the small array of buttons and toggles built into the costly component. The steering wheel alone cost more than his Jeep with its various add-ons. Hooked up directly to the car’s electronic control module the screen before him responded to the various commands from his fingers. Brake temp, ignition timing, exhaust temperature and a myriad of other information flowed on the screen before him. His dad leaned over in the cockpit watching.

One of the problems with having a special built engine from Japan was just that, it was from Japan and so was its accompanying diagnostic software. None of the components were meant for distribution outside of Japan. Joel’s dad, an old school tuner himself, looked on quizzically and shook his head. “Glad you can read all that.” He said with a chuckle.

“I can’t read it all,” Joel said with a grin, “Just the important bits.” He didn’t consider himself fluent in Japanese, but looked at it more like the code from the Matrix. As the information passed by he knew certain things meant “Suspension” or “Engine Sensors” and when he looked at the numbers and the accompanying diagrams he knew when he was on the right track. Nissan organized their information in fairly logical and intuitive way when it came to their performance technology. He looked up in the mirrors to make sure everyone was clear of the exhaust. One of Tommy’s former linemen gave him the go ahead to fire it up. The fuel pump primed instantly in the green on his display and he held the ignition down noting the background sound of a helicopter seemed exceptionally close.

The engine hummed loudly like an angry hornet and Joel watched the display intensely as he gave it a few quick revs. The tachometer display reacted like a flick of the wrist with only a flex of his toe. Everything was in the green, aside from the tire temperature. The outside air had cooled them from sitting still. He glanced over at the extra sets they had stacked up all secure in their warming jackets. They’d be practicing pit stops once the car was warmed up and both he and Tommy had done a few laps.

Listening to the blissful sound of eight small cylinders responding to the lightest movement of his foot and staring at the diagnostic screen, Joel at first didn’t notice his dad’s hand nudging him at the shoulder, but a more firm push broke him from his trance. He looked up to see the man shouting over the sound of the exhaust, “Somebody’s here to see you!”

It took Joel a moment to come out of his happy place and lean forward to look past his dad. At first he didn’t even notice the woman standing right in front of him, but instead looked at Tommy very diplomatically meeting a small delegation near the helicopter. What the hell is he up to? Was his first thought before he locked eyes back with Marlin, slightly dumbfounded. His dad gave him a look of are you going to get out of that thing or what? It was a stern glance Joel was accustomed to since childhood that normally accompanied situations where he needed to move, now. He shut the engine down.

Hey, seems we bump into each other again

“Huh?” Joel said slowly making his way back to the world of normal civilized conversation. He was climbing out of the car. “Oh, Hey, yea… what’s up, chicky? You kinda surprised me. Wasn’t expecting visitors.”

Joel's playlist #5


@PrinceAlexus

Sol City [Modern Slice of Life] . (CHAPTER ONE COMPLETED!) . ARCHIVED

@Mattchstick

LOL, yea, I'm tired. 50 hours this week and 6 more tomorrow.

What I'm getting at is we just started a new time period so it's a good time.

Sol City [Modern Slice of Life] . (CHAPTER ONE COMPLETED!) . ARCHIVED

<Snipped quote by Mattchstick>

good to go, long as Pilatus happy :)

@PrinceAlexus

Looks good, move him over to IC tab.

As far as time skip goes, there's no time like the present so I'd say jump in and don't wait. The current play period is a Saturday from 12am to early afternoon. You can play at any time between. Just make sure you mark your posts with the time your character is in.