Snrk....
And more
The original description was:
"They're both what we call Gearheads. Car nuts, gun nuts, mecha nuts sort of people" "Best thing to say is, they're the sort of people who, if they discovered another asteroid was going to smash into their home in two years - instead of scooting out and just sticking a small thruster on it to inch it away and never worrying about it again, would spend the next 23 months rush-designing and building a Nu-Gundam replica to push it away at the last dramatic moment, just because they could."
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--m(^0^)m-- Wot, no sig?
And more
Quote:Benjamin's single-cylinder trailbike receded away behind as Shinji tickled at the throttle. The Judy dipped into what felt like an infinite well of electric power. It surged forward with a whine from the motors. The turbine didn't even bother waking up.
"Hey, hey, you want to hold up up there Shinji?"
The drawl tickled through the earpiece in his helmet. Clearly, Benjamin Rhodes was not used to being left behind. And that thought made Shinji grin. It warmed him from the core with a smug satisfaction. Shinji eased back on the throttle just enough to allow him to catch up.
It was.... it made him feel powerful. He could set the pace. He could choose to leave. He could choose to allow Ben to catch up, or not. He could lead, rather than be dragged. Shinji had control.
"How much power's that thing got?"
Someone Benjamin seemed almost out of breath, asif it'd been his personal effort to keep up and not the Yamaha's. Shinji cycled through the displays until he found the one labelled 'available power;
"3500 kilowatt hours.... " He checked the guage. "And It's about a third empty."
He didn't really know how much that was, but it seemed like a lot.
"Shit. I'm going to have to find out what that Tanalloy stuff is, if it's unwaved."
"I really don't know."
"Remind me to bug Jet for the plans because I'm going to want to built one of these for myself.
"You know Jet?"
"She worked for me up until about three years ago. Why, you want to know more about her?"
Shinji immediately felt just a little uncomfortable.... "Well..."
Yes, but he didn't want to say so out loud.
Ben sighed aloud "I'm not sure how much I should really tell. Best I can say is, they're both good people who try to do the right thing, and succeed about as often as we all do. They both want to be good people. Jet's a real warrior... I mean really, while Ford's the sort of person you can always trust to get your back in a pinch. Both of them like things that make a lot of noise and go really, really fast, both of them are pretty good at making things that make a lot of noise and go really, really fast.
Shinji tweaked the throttle a little bit. It made noise and it went fast
"And they've probably both saved each other lives just by meeting each other and getting together."
He glanced over at the other rider, turning it over his mind, trying to fit it all to the people. It made sense that Jet was military. Used to bossing people around and telling them what to do. Ford had always seemed like a decent sort.... just as American as Ben, but not quite has upfront. Her accent was different...
"I see," he said, more to demonstrate he was listening.
"That's about as far as I can go without betraying private secrets. But If you want an idea about who they might be, watch Bubblegum Crisis for Jet, and read Gunsmith Cats for Ford..... and don't ever ask Ford where Minnie May is." There was a pause. Ben chuckled deeply "Or do, because you can get away with it and it's always fun to watch."
Shinji was certain that, behind the stark white chinbar of the helmet was a big fat grin
"So they based their lives on fiction?"
"Not really. Jet, yes.... Ford is just sort of the same enough that people are starting to comment on it. It's pretty common." The rider shrugged to show it was no big deal "Some people fight against it because they don't want the attention, others embrace it and just have a good time. Haven't you ever watched a TV show and just wished you could do that. Well now you a can."
"No Not really," he admitted, quietly . He wanted to say that he never even saw a TV until he was ten, but that wasn't him, was it? And even when he was asked to pilot the giant robot..... "I never wanted anything for my life. I just sort of carried on."
"Hmmm.... Have you found anything you like doing?"
"I've only been here for a few days..."
He didn't want to say he'd only been alive for a few days.... as true as he knew it was, it just didn't feel right.
"You gotta have some idea.... something you found you like?"
Shinji grinned, then squeezed the throttle down as hard as it would go. The turbine engine wailed to life to, screaming like a pained animal. The power meter was pegged at 'discharge' , while the digital numbers on the digital speedometer were a green blur. Shinji was dragged backwards by some giant hand trying to pull him off the back of the motorcycle.
He was laughing like a madman as the pressure eased, the speedometer reading a steady 334 kph, with the world 'Limit' flickering in yellow letters.
Benjamin Rhodes and the barking single-cylinder Yamaha...... had disappeared. It's headlight was a spark far behind, and quickly getting further. It was nearly lost in the glow of his own red taillights. The tunnel lights bled into a pair of continuous white strips lighting the way forward, broken only by the occasional burned-out gap. The roar of the wind rushing past drowned out the wail of the turbines.
It was lightspeed. It was ludicrous speed. It was a mad rush of power that seemed to surge through him. And it was under his control. It was his choice.
He'd left Benjamin long behind.
He released the trigger. The turbine coughed and cut tout immediately, the whine from the motors deepening as he coasted down. The power meter showed maximum regen as speed fell away. 160 felt like walking pace
Shinji'd come to a complete stop by the time the headlight re-appeared. He was waiting, still giggling inside his helmet while being secretely terrified that Ben would be annoyed by is sudden escape run.
The thrumm of the single cylinder engine grew deeper as it closed in, the spark of a headlight growing fast. It squeaked to a halt beside him, engine popping
Shinji opened his mouth to apologise, but what came out was hard, sharp laughter.
"God damn Shinji, you are one of Jet's." He was... impressed. "Of course, if you think that's quick, I'm going to have to put you behind the controls of a Valkyrie. "
"One of those big jets?" He glanced nervously behind him, as if expecting one to suddenly sneak right up on him.
"Well yeah. You can even call that an official job offer if you like. If you're ever stuck for work, we could always find a place for you as a pilot."
"But I don't know how to fly?"
It was the polite way to try to say no.
Ben shrugged his shoulders. "Neither did I at first. You can be anything you want to be. You're only limited by how hard you want to try. Dare mighty things, Shinji. rather than live in that grey twilight that knows neither victory nor defeat."
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The original description was:
"They're both what we call Gearheads. Car nuts, gun nuts, mecha nuts sort of people" "Best thing to say is, they're the sort of people who, if they discovered another asteroid was going to smash into their home in two years - instead of scooting out and just sticking a small thruster on it to inch it away and never worrying about it again, would spend the next 23 months rush-designing and building a Nu-Gundam replica to push it away at the last dramatic moment, just because they could."
________________________________
--m(^0^)m-- Wot, no sig?