Beltan News: In The Pits, Goldhand, The Little Fockers and Horny Suga Daddies are about to compete against each other for the first time in three years. The Little Fockers are four times softball champions, but they were relegated to the second division four years ago. Now, they're back and leading the league after their new owner (Yuta Blue) injected millions of credits into the team and bought the best players. Meanwhile, Horny Suga Daddies (last year's champion) sit second on the table, a point behind the leaders.
Wolf hadn't heard from Rainbow for a week, and all his calls went straight to voicemail. She had left him a message saying she would return soon, and in the meantime, he shouldn't search for her.
He didn't listen.
Wednesday had scoured the internet, looking for Rainbow's whereabouts, but there was nothing to find. With Rainbow being the one who built Wednesday, she knew how to hide from the AI.
Wolf finally gave in and accepted to wait for Rainbow's return. But in the meantime, he needed a new translation chip. The old one had stopped working the moment he had stepped out of the GSF, and he didn't want Wednesday's voice in his ear translating everything. So, he had called Lazy Eyes and Marcos and asked if they knew someone who sold good translation chips for cheap. They recommended Pervy Pete, a mechanic in Ganymede.
"How're ye feelin'?" Pervy Pete asked after sitting down next to Wolf. He was a large, dark-skinned man with a potbelly and a sleeve of white tattoos on his arms, legs, and neck.
"Better now." Wolf stroked the back of his neck where the new chip was. The area was numb, but he was thankful the post-surgery nausea wore off. "How many languages did you say the chip can translate?"
Pervy Pete didn't reply, busy staring at a light-skinned woman with thick thighs, dressed in tight black shorts and a football jersey. She walked to a group of women in similar clothing before sitting between them. He turned to Wolf. "What did ye say?"
Wolf chuckled. Marcos and Lazy Eyes had warned him Pervy Pete was a sucker for women. Young or old, rich or poor, tall or short; it didn't matter to him. He was thirsty for them twenty-four-seven. "I asked about the languages in the chip."
"It kin translate oh the languages in awah system," Pervy Pete replied. "Ah have been workin' on tha translation software since ah wis a pre-teen. Ah traveled tha system back then. Ah wis able ta visit and study different regions and the-ya cultures. Ye kin connect tha chip ta yer spaceship's AI and it will learn tha languages wi'in seconds."
Wolf's old translation chip got rid of people's accents, unlike this one. He sighed, not looking forward to his new normal.
"The chip connected itself to me the moment it was inserted," Wednesday said. "There are so many languages in it, even the native ones. And each language shows the society it came from. After I get my sleeve, I'll visit all of them."
Wolf ignored Wednesday's comments. They hadn't been agreeing on most things lately. The AI wanted him to confront the other coyotes before taking charge of the mission, believing he could capture Cleopatra with ease—the same way he did with Sister Mary. Wolf had refused; he wanted the other coyotes to ask him for help. Wednesday said it wouldn't happen.
"What did you see out there?" Wolf hadn't traveled to most parts of the system, sticking to areas under The Federation and the moon colonies. He had never been to the Asteroid Belt or the planets under The League and The Kingdom.
"Death." Pervy Pete pointed to a short, chubby, brown-skinned woman with short blue hair, wearing a blue suit and matching tie. "The-ya's tha Master of Ceremony."
"Tha race is aboot ta start," the boy sitting on Wolf's other side said before standing. Everyone in the stadium did the same once they noticed the MC. Murmurs turned into chants, followed by the beating of drums and blowing of horns.
This was the first time Wolf attended Blueline. He had watched it here and there and heard about the winners in passing. But he was not a fanatic like Pervy Pete. After the surgery, the mechanic had asked him to attend the race with him. He believed they could be wingmen and pick up women at the stadium. It hadn't worked out so far.
"Is it always this packed?" Wolf stared at the joyous faces of humans and machines in the crowd. It didn't matter who or what they were, they danced and sang together like there was no tomorrow.
"Always." Pervy Pete joined the others and sang Blueline's official theme song, Stick It In There. He had one arm around Wolf's shoulder and the other on the old man beside him.
The sense of community around the stadium brought tears to Wolf's eyes. He had nothing close to this in Wonderland. It was always him and Rainbow living day by day in the hope of a better future. Though he didn't regret it, he wished he could have experienced this.
The MC stood on the metallic platform, and it raised her until she was eye-level with the top section of the stadium. "Ladies and Gentlemen," she started, "welcome ta Blueline!"
Fireworks shot to the sky and exploded in an array of colors, brightening the atmosphere. The crowd "oohed" and "aahed" when the colors spelled out BLUELINE.
"Wi'oot wasting time," the MC directed her arm towards the enormous gate to the left of the stadium, "let's welcome tha competitors."
The gate separated into two parts, revealing the Tarzan Ocean behind it. The bright blue hue of the sky reflected off the water, making it sparkle.
Wolf gasped when he saw a school of merpeople swimming past the stadium. They waved at the crowd, and the crowd waved back. Merpeople were cyborgs who lived underwater and sold the meat of aquatic animals to the mainland. With Ganymede being a water world, it had fifteen islands and five oceans. And each ocean bordered five islands.
"First up, Calisto's own, Dango," the MC said.
A red hover-tank entered the stadium and took its place on the right side. A holo-number 1 floated above it. The top opened, and a dark-skinned man with a large metallic arm, a walrus mustache, and a cigar in his hand got out.
A drone flew next to him, carrying a mic in its hands.
"My name is Dango," he said into the mic. "I'm here to exact revenge and vin." He spat on the ground and snorted. "Zat's all."
"Dango's the second favorite to win Blueline. He has never won it before, coming close on four occasions only to lose to Riley. He hates her with a passion," Wednesday said.
The MC introduced ten more contestants, all from distinct parts of the system. They each gave a speech about why they entered Blueline and what they would do with the ten million prize money. As each spoke, Wednesday revealed their backstories.
"Ladies, Gentlemen, Children, and Machines, it's tha moment yer been waiting for!" the MC shouted. If she did so any longer, she would've lost her voice. She hadn't done this with the others. But when the crowd realized who was up next, they began chanting her name. The MC grinned. "I present ta ye The Hero, Master of Races, Unstoppable Force, and Queen of Speed. Ganymede's own, Riley Runtown!"
The crowd went ballistic.
Pervy Pete hugged the old man beside him, and they jumped up and down like excited fanboys.
Wolf didn't know who she was or what the hype was about.
"Riley Runtown—aka R2—has won six of the last ten races, and she has been competing for eleven years. Most racing fans believe she's the best racer of all time. I hacked Dango's SaidThat account, and it seems he has allied with two other racers. They plan on killing her before they reach the halfway point," Wednesday said.
"Isn't that illegal?" Wolf asked.
"No. Their vehicles have all manners of weapons and shields. Blowing your opponent to pieces adds to the spectacle of the race. Nothing's off-limits in Blueline."
Riley Runtown stepped out of her red and black muscle car while the crowd chanted her name, revealing her dark skin and long, puffy red hair that glowed as bright as fire. She stood still with a grin on her face, seeming to cherish the fans' love.
Wolf put a hand on his chest, his heart racing. "Wednesday, I'm in love," he said.
"You're not in love. You're just horny," Wednesday replied.
"Whatever." He waved her off and stared at Riley Runtown. Even though she was gazing at the crowd, it felt like she was looking at only him. If birds could sing, they would've been crooning a wedding song.
A drone flew towards Riley with a mic in its hand. Before she spoke, someone tapped Wolf's shoulder. He turned, coming face to face with a brown-skinned man in a purple suit, a matching cape that flapped behind him, a top hat on his head, and transparent aviator goggles on his face.
"Art thee Wolf?" the man asked.
"Yes." Wolf crossed his arms. "And you are?"
The man smiled, revealing his pearly white teeth. "Forgive thy manners, but thee can calleth me The Gentleman."