Podrace Pamarthe Watercraft Classic - Open to Additional Racers/Spectators

[Light Rises]

The race was off. The announcers were carrying on, one from the North and one from the South of Pamarthe, seeing the different cuts of boats and the way racers were handling themselves. It did seem that there were at least two false starts, with the native son of Pamarthe was having to get his second boat out already. That was not a good sign, not with two other Pamarthens on the course. The first was Brooke Waters, starting out really strong and the other being Jakk Parthas, was off to a little bit slower of a start, but not nearly as bad as Leith.

The definitely called out the Corellian racer who had a rough start, a repair, but it didn't seem to be enough. "Someone better send a rescue craft over to Kryszar! Or hook him up with Morayson's mechanic team!"

"Don't forget to keep an eye on the other two we have, Sar'andor and Merrill! They seem to be after a bit of a grudge match! But its anyone's race, with 7 legs!"

(In next post can you all please BOLD your current counts?)

Jakk Parthas Cotan Sar'andor Jorus Q. Merrill Tris Dantum Kryszar

 

[Brooke Waters]

She really missed sailing, powered watercraft were fine, they were even fun, but it was not what she preferred to do. Without looking over her shoulder, she was hearing that there were at least two mis-starts, one seemed to take a lot more than the other. Hopefully it was that Leith man. He was… he was a native but boy did she not really appreciate his candor in the past.

Anyway, there was the other that was coming up. She saw the two other offworlders fighting it out, as the Corellian seemed to be really down and out. But her eyes were focused on Jakk. She was going to be doing some catch up. Waves were coming in as she rounded the first mark, taking it to port. The Force seemed to be with her, even if she wasn't calling on it. Or it was just good fun now?

She sped her powercraft up and was doing her best to fog the view for Tris as well… time was weird and others were on their third lap. A bit of a sharp cut to throw some heavier wake in front of his watercraft, hoping to slow him down and stutter him as she made her move to head for the second mark.

Leg 1: 17
Leg 2: 7

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

LEG 4
9+7+15+17=48

Eyes shut, Jorus flinched as the spray kicked up. The boat chugged and groaned as it fought through the waves on the north side of the atoll, bearing west toward the fourth beacon. The salvaged motor dug in deep and surged ahead. Keeping the boat on course required all his attention. With all his focus on the course, he had no idea who else whas around, ahead, gaining ground on him.

He found himself becoming seasick at really the worst possible time. Hyperspace had its own turbulence, but that was nothing like a pitching deck. Even his years on stone age sailboats didn't fully insulate him from the bouncing nausea.

Tris Brooke Waters Cotan Sar'andor Jakk Parthas

 

[Cotan Sar'andor]

(Leg 4: 8+12+10+18=48 YOU CAN'T GET AWAY FROM ME OLD MAN)

Honestly, the other competitors could go to hell. Corellian or Naboo, he didn't care much which; he had to at least keep up with Jorus. Luckily, he was more than capable of doing that...all he had to do was manage to get past the older man now. But, maybe, he could at least say something to help him, keep the competition fair.

"Open your eyes, Jorus!" he roared over the sound of their engines, noticing that the man was starting to look almost as green as his former Padawan did some days. "Keeping them closed just makes the rocking worse!"

Jorus Q. Merrill

 

[Jakk Likonis]

(Leg Four: 4+6+12+15= 37)

He was progressively getting better, falling into the old rhythms that he had been taught as a child. Rounding the fourth buoy, he turned into a power slide - his aft caught a wave then, powering him forward. Up ahead, he could see Cotan and Jorus neck and neck. <Damn if that isn't some rivalry. Look at them go!> And it was something else - the two waveskimmers were practically tied; and Jakk knew that it would be their race, not whoever was in first, that would be the talk of the crowd. <I need a nemesis.> Mused Jakk, catching another friendly wave as he tacked towards the fifth buoy.


Tris Brooke Waters Cotan Sar'andor Jorus Q. Merrill

 

[Tris]

Leg 3 - 3
Leg 4 - 5
Total - 38

That boost had really put him ahead of the pack for a time but the old geezers were shafting him right now. Somewhere, a part of him wished their engines would both burn salt and explode.

Either way, a last-minute swap of skimmers meant he wasn't in last place at least. He did find it both odd and a little insulting that both the contestants in the lowest places were Pamarthen natives.

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

LEG 5
9+7+15+17+18=66

The ramshackle boat bore to port and roared due south. This was the long leg, and maybe the most dangerous one: the atoll's westernmost point jutted out to become a stretch of rocky shallows.

In theory the route steered well clear, but the racers faced a choice: curve out a little, or risk the strict straight line. Jorus chose the latter, picking up speed through the surf. The boat rattled across frequent shallow waves, skimmed aggressively.

He lost the bead on messing with Cotan. His gut suggested the supreme importance of keeping his eyes open. His hands tightened on the controls until her knuckles went white. One bad twitch and this could get apocalyptic.

Jakk Parthas Tris Cotan Sar'andor Brooke Waters

 

[Cotan Sar'andor]

Dammit, dammit, dammit.

There wasn't much time left to try and pull out a win over Jorus. He went down the straightaway as well, pushing his craft as hard as he could.

...With no luck. Maybe some of Jorus's spray found its way into the heart of the engine, he didn't know, but he could feel it die underneath him.

New plan; if he couldn't beat Jorus, he'd make it so that the man's win counted for both of them. He leaped off of his flailing vessel, landing just behind Jorus on his. "Push it hard, man, for both of us," he grumbled irritably.

(Cotan Sar'andor switching over to Jorus's on-board support, the race organizer already told me I could.)

Jorus Q. Merrill

 

[Tris]

Leg 5 Total - 54

Cotan Sar'andor

The rocks were rough. He'd be buffing out more than a few dents and pinstripes when this was all over. Off in the distance, he saw a group of Sea Dragons lazing about in the sun, their round bellies looking ready to burst from either gorging or bloat.

He hated those things.

Seawater sprayed across his cockpit and face, the water adding a refreshing chill to his race-warm body. He was still too far behind. And then...A miracle happened. One of the lead racers, some goon with a beard and robes, started dropping dropping dropping towards the sea. He hoped he didn't crash into the rocks. He hoped there weren't any hungry Pamarthen lions swimming around waiting for an easy meal of the Sea Dragons. Either way, he shot past the burned-out skimmer swoop and hoped to the Storm Father that he made it to the end.

"Kothan Si!" he shouted over the roar of his engines as he passed the poor fellow.

 

[Jakk Likonis]

(EDIT: Whoopsies. According to chat seems the dice fudded out on this post. Going to re-roll. If for some reason the dice magically come back on this post by the end of the race, I'll honor this post.)

 

[Jakk Likonis]

(Leg FIVE: 4+6+12+15+8= 45)

The throttle was open, the waveskimmer roaring forward. Ahead, suddenly, Cotan's vessel went from top speed to nothing - the spindly man leaping forward onto Jorus' vessel. He was out of the race it seemed. <That's some right terrible luck.>

Then out of nowhere Leith screamed past his own waveskimmer. Glumly, Jakk flinched as the swells threw him off course slightly - by the time he had corrected, Leith was far ahead. "Kothan Si, indeed." Muttered Jakk. "Death would be preferable to this embarrassment." How was it the two Pamarthens were in last place? That was some backward logic right there.

 

[Brooke Waters]

Brooke had a lot of experience on the water, but when she was doing a move that was going to cost someone else time? That was not normally her style. She was letting her emotions get the better of her. Leith just rubbed her the wrong way, and while it was all in good fun, she didn't realize that while she was moving to throw wake over at the man, that she was getting herself in someone else's wake.

The watercraft bounced once, twice, and spun out, throwing Brooke overboard.

She was a Blue Coral Diver, and a native born. The water here wasn't so bad… but she still didn't want to be in it. As she went over, she used the Force to pull a life vest over. She wasn't a podracer, she was a sailor, and this powered watercraft stuff was for the birds. She hit the water hard, and went under, but her Blubreen blood kicked in and she was breathing, but what she was going to have to do was wait for a rescue.

Next time, Leith.

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

SIXTH LEG
9+7+15+17+18+14 (from Cotan)=80

The weather started to turn as Jorus rounded the fifth buoy and angled north. The sixth leg was short but nasty, a blitz back inside the atoll over barely-submerged sandbars. He wove between giant clam-trumpets, loathe to damage the wildlife, and took more than a few scrapes as a result. The treacherous stretch had come up on him quick, right after that brutal turn, and he found himself losing the bead, off balance and scrambling.

His stomach lurched. A heartbeat later, his boat struck a submerged rock and—

OOC/ Cotan Sar'andor , I'm gonna need that reroll.

Jakk Parthas Tris Brooke Waters

 

[Cotan Sar'andor]

SIXTH LEG
9+7+15+17+18+COTAN=???

The weather started to turn as Jorus rounded the fifth buoy and angled north. The sixth leg was short but nasty, a blitz back inside the atoll over barely-submerged sandbars. He wove between giant clam-trumpets, loathe to damage the wildlife, and took more than a few scrapes as a result. The treacherous stretch had come up on him quick, right after that brutal turn, and he found himself losing the bead, off balance and scrambling.

His stomach lurched. A heartbeat later, his boat struck a submerged rock and—

OOC/ Cotan Sar'andor , I'm gonna need that reroll.

(What are the odds? Good god. I'll let you decide on your environmental worry for your next post, remember the -1 to it. Roll at least a 3. 9+7+15+17+18+14=80 For Jorus)

Good thing Cotan landed when he did, because Jorus ran into some tough luck as well. Between rocks and wildlife, the craft was taking quite a beating, and it didn't look like it could take much more than it already had done to it when the old man convinced it to work again. "Give me a moment," he growled, shutting his own eyes.

Jorus went off-balance not because of the turn, but because of the barrier Cotan formed around the boat. Drag reduced slightly, it started to cut through the water much more nicely—and bounced off of the rock that Jorus thought he hit. After a moment, he released his concentration, the barrier dissipating and the craft going back to a more normal movement through the water. "There," he told the old man, opening his eyes again to see where they were. "Hell, that was a lot of water to try and push aside."

 

[Tris]

Sixth Leg total: 66

Damn. It looked like the old man was about to bite it. But still he was so far ahead now as they came around over the atolls for the final leg. This was it. Do, or do not.

 

[Tris]

Total= 85

The wind raced through his locks, tossing them this way and that. In the air he could see skyeels and speagulls soaring and dancing in the sky above the racers. Crews were already moving to start removing the wrecks from the atolls and rocks along the race track. Leith reflected on the race as he approached the finish line. There were plenty of things he could have done better. It seemed that the Stormfather had a few words to say about the race overall too with how many bottomed out along the way.

Either way, he couldn't say he didn't have a good time.

Jorus Q. Merrill | Jakk Parthas | Brooke Waters

 

[Light Rises]

(Apologies, life)

This was shaping up to be some race. One of the first water-power craft races in a while, the Galactic Watercraft Circuit was more worried about their racers and their properties than the blood sport of podracing. There was definitely overlap, but an exploding pod was a quick and fast death, as opposed to the powerboats, and well, many worlds were going to be upset to lose some of their favored racers.

The LASRTs were out to perform search and rescue of at least the skipper.

"Looks like Coren Starchaser there has crashed and is now… riding on with Merrill? What a trick! Oh… and the hometown girl has taken a spill, the SAR teams are on their way out there.

"Its going well for the other racers out there! Jakk and Leith the latter with his rough start are still kicking in! Still too close to call, but most of the racers are already moving back into the atoll! First to the finish now!"

Cotan Sar'andor Jorus Q. Merrill Tris Jakk Parthas Dantum Kryszar

 

[Jorus Q. Merrill]

FINAL LEG
9+7+15+17+18+14 (from Cotan)+1 (2-environmental hazard)=82 WITH A CRASH

The waves turned aggressive, as if pushing back against what Cotan had done a minute ago. The ramshackle engine finally gave out in a towering column of sparks a few yards short of the finish line, and Tris zipped past. Jorus let out a shaky breath and peeled his hands off the controls. The powercraft groaned as it decelerated, drifting through the finish.

Since he was very much in the way and very much without an engine, he dug around and came up with a paddle. He began paddling that powerboat off to the side. The engine continued to fountain smoke into an acrid pillar.

Looking around, every single racer but the Pamarthens had crashed. All was as it should be — the will of the Force, even. An offworlder could never have won a powerboat race on Pamarthe. Jorus found his heart light and his stomach pleasantly growly. Time to find some shrimp.

Cotan Sar'andor Jakk Parthas Dantum Kryszar Brooke Waters

 

[Jakk Likonis]

(Sorry everyone; caught Covid, was out for a solid week and a half. I'm fine - just slept a lot.)

(Leg SEVEN: 4+6+12+15+8+3+15= 63)

He used the surf to his advantage, took the corners around the buoys, and read the waters as his father had taught him. It simply...wasn't enough. It kept him in the race for sure, as everyone around him dropped like flies; it made sense to him, of course - only a Pamarthen could truly understand the salt and spray. As it should be.

Yet...

Jakk had never really been comfortable relying on others. As a Pamarthen, that was somewhat in his blood; be self sufficient, do your best, and if the water takes you, then go down fighting. But as Tris pulled into first, Jakk couldn't help but wince - the other racer's support had given him a solid edge in the race.

If Jakk wanted to grow as a racer, then he would need to admit his own limitations and find some support for himself.

As Jakk's own waveskimmer passed the finish line, its momentum carrying it past Leith's own craft, he raised up out of his seat and turned towards the crowd, raising a fist as he did so.

"Caltan Leith ko sheth! Sar Pamarthe!"
(Captain Leith has brought his ship home! Glory to Pamarthe!"

Turning towards the victor, Jakk gave a Pamarthen salute to the man, the crowd roaring in response. Second was nothing to be ashamed of after all - and honor in defeat was important in Pamarthe culture.

Besides...

Jakk had found his own "nemesis" in this race. He would look forward to trying to overtake the man in the future.

Tris Brooke Waters Jorus Q. Merrill Dantum Kryszar Cotan Sar'andor Light Rises

 

[Light Rises]

The race was coming to a close, so many people were heading for the line. "It looks like this race is coming down to only a few people. Merrill, Morayson, and Parthas are coming in!" The noise on the spectator fleet was very loud and excited. People were having their fair share of a good time, whether they were watching the race or just celebrating the day.

"Looks like the seas of Pamarthe have kept claiming victims, but here we have three at the line, and two of our world!

"Oh no! Looks like Merrill got hit! Looks like its Morayson and Parthas! Its Morayson at the line!"

More cheers erupted and fireworks launched from the line as the race was called. "Pamarthe Tourist Council would like to welcome all participants and spectators to an after race event!"



Tris

Jakk Parthas

Dantum Kryszar

Jorus Q. Merrill

Cotan Sar'andor