“This story is fiction. All names of characters, places and organizations in the story are fictional. Follow the traffic rules and drive safely.”
The night is quiet, aside from the sound of crickets chirping silently around the poorly-lightened roads of the Great Valley Mountains. From the distance, the sound of something screeching far in the distance can be heard. A music track called “Space Boy” starts to play as eventually the sound of a car starts to increase in volume, approaching closer and closer, until it finally zooms past with a tremendous velocity.
The car turns out to be a Plymouth Fury, and it is proving its worth this night in top gear as it blasts down the twisting roads, stirring up surrounding branches and grass around the road; even causing a nearby aluminium drinking can to come flying out of its hiding place on the side of the road.
The Plymouth drifts madly across some very sharp turns, almost literally sliding sideways across both lanes of the narrow road but safely sliding back without a worry. It is clearly obvious that the person behind the wheel is an incredibly-skilled driver.
Meanwhile, further down the road, a car parked alongside the road dwells. A man sitting in the driver’s seat is running an electric razor alongside his cheek before he sees the car approaching. He flashes his lights to get the car’s attention, but the Plymouth just shoots past him faster than lightning.
Looking over his shoulder, before looking in his rear-view mirror, the man smiles. “That guy never changes.”
The car continues to pound down the road.
Act 1: The Ultimate Super Drift!
It is the next day. Everything seems to be peaceful down in the valley.
Aside from the look on a young man’s face, rather bored, staring outwardly into the distance leaning on his elbows upon the rail of a road-bypass bridge. The man turns out to be Michael, known as the Dino Ranger.
“Even the 91 model runs 1.3 million coins,” a voice spoke nearby. “Geez, this S13 is too expensive!”
Michael’s friend, Zachary, is sitting nearby, flicking through an automotive magazine. “Like I figured, I’m gonna have to go with a 86. That baby’s the only real possibility, ëcause no matter what it’s gotta be an FR. Right, Mike? Mike!”
Zachary pulls a face as he turns to his friend. “ARE YOU EVEN LISTENING TO ME!?”
“Of course I’m listening to you, Zach,” Michael replied in a bored tone. “You’re about to tell me how much it’s gonna cost to get that 86 you’ve been staring at.”
Zachary went straight back to looking at the mag. “This one’s marked to 300,000 but it hasn’t passed inspection.”
“And how much money do you have stuffed away so far?” Michael reluctantly asked.
Zachary’s shoulders and head drooped. “Like 50,000,” he groaned. From behind, a high school student passes by.
“Long way to go.”
“I know. It’s depressing.” Zachary put his arms up above his head in annoyance, thus bringing the magazine up behind his head. “There’s gotta be a way to make a quick buck around here! Even if we kicked it up to full-time at the Great Valley Diner during the summer break we’d still only make like about 120,000 coins at most!”
Unnoticed from behind, another student stops to hear the conversation.
“There’s gotta be a better job around here,” Zachary continued to complain.
“I didn’t know you guys had part-time jobs,” the student asked from behind him. Both Zach and Mike turned, rather surprised, to see their dino friend. “Ruby!”
“Well, you don’t have to act so shocked,” Ruby continued. “Is it that weird that I talk to you?”
Michael leaned back on the rail again. “No, not really.”
Ruby turned to Zachary. “So, you were saying you’d only make about 120,000 coins working full-time this summer? How many hours a day is that?”
“Like, twelve or more!” Zach complained.
Ruby was stunned. “HUH? A full month’s worth of work and that’s all you’re working away with!?”
“And it could be worse,” Michael sighed. “At least we’ve got jobs.”
“We’re high school students,” Zachary added. “We get paid terribly because they can get away with it.”
Ruby looked doubtful. “I wouldn’t know. I’ve never worked a part-time job before and never had to.”
Presently, the bell rang over the school building. It was time to return to the next class.
“Hey, good luck with your summer jobs, you guys,” Ruby held up her fist in an effort to brighten the boys up. “All of us should really get together and hang out once school is over.”
Zachary really brightened up at that as Ruby walked off. “Dude, did you hear that?” he told Michael. “She wants to get together! Me out on a date with Ruby! SW-WEEEET! That’d be so cool!”
But Michael simply remained uninterested. Zachary turned back towards him. “Hey, why didn’t you tell me she dug me so hard? You never even bothered to mention to me that the –”
“Probably because she and I haven’t talked to each other in about in a while or so,” Michael spoke over him, getting Zach’s attention. “We both used to belong in the same after-school club. Up until sometime last summer we were pretty much still friends, I thought.”
“What are you babbling on about, buddy?” Zachary smirked as Michael looked back out into the distance. “I mean really, no one cares. Oh Natsuki the hottie, I’ve had my eye on you for as long as you’ve been strutting your stuffing. Baby, Zackie’s ready for ya!”
A few images of something that occurred in the past flash in Michael’s mind for a moment…
“Michael! Back to planet Earth, man! We’re gonna get busted if we don’t get to grammar fast! The test is in like two minutes!” Zachary bolted.
“Oh geez! Wait up!” Michael followed him.
Later on that day, Michael and Zachary were heading towards the Diner on foot. They were waiting at a railroad crossing for a freight train to pass on it's way west. “I’ve got an idea,” Zachary piped up. “Why don’t you and I go in on the 86 together? We pull our money; we’ll be able to afford the loan payments easily.”
“That’s a terrible idea,” Michael disagreed. “Why do you want a car that much anyway? Doesn’t your family already have one? Just use theirs if you need it so bad.”
“That piece is no frickin’ good!” Zach complained again. “My old man’s been driving that automatic front-wheel drive into the ground for a decade-plus, not to mention it’s diesel. The thing sucks out loud! Calling it a car is an insult to cars everywhere! You know what I mean?”
Michael just looked blank. “If it has all four tyres and it gets you from Point A to Point B then it’s a car.”
“You don’t get it, man!” Zach replied. “I wouldn’t consider anything a car that doesn’t deliver a good time on the mountain!”
“What’s so much fun about driving on the mountain?” Michael asked, causing Zachary to turn and stare at him as if he was looking at a total stranger. “Watch your fig, doofus! You drive as fast as you can, challenging the corners!”
“The corners, huh? That’s really the kind of thing you do for fun?” Michael questioned. Once again, Zachary was stunned. “I wouldn’t be doing it if it was boring! Look, you’re a dude, right, and you’re telling me you don’t feel the unquenchable desire to tackle those raging hair-pins?”
Soon the caboose passed, and the gates lifted, it meant to proceed. “I don’t know,” Michael spoke boredly as they started to walk. “Maybe I’m just burned out on that kind of stuff.”
“How could you be burned out?” Zach demanded. “We just got our licences a while ago…we’re babies in the driving world!”
Meanwhile, elsewhere, Ruby was waiting patiently on the side of the road. A nearby car pulled up. She opened the door and sat down in the passenger seat, buckling the seat-belt.
“Looking cute, sweetheart,” the driver, who turned out to be her long lost father, commented. “I always love the way you wear that outfit.”
“Thanks,” Ruby chuckled. “It’s just my school uniform.”
The car took off down the street. “I was talking with this friend of mine at school and he was telling me a little bit about the job he’s got lined up for the summer break,” Ruby continued as she stared out the window. “He said after working the entire summer sometimes with shifts that are over twelve hours a day, he’s probably only gonna end up bringing in like 120,000 coins.”
Her father chuckled. “Yes, that sounds about right.”
“Guess it’s a lot harder to earn money than I thought. I should be more considerate,” Ruby agreed. “I’ve seen you spend more than that on me in a month without even blinking an eye. It makes me feel kind of bad.”
She looked over at her father. “Are you really okay with spending that much on me?”
“Of course I am, sweetheart,” was the reply. “You’re worth it.”
“I am? Maybe I just don’t get it.”
* * *
Down at the Diner…
“Thank you and come again soon!” two voices yelled out to the customer walking out of the building, before walking back to the kitchen.
“Michael, I really want you to put a little more thought into going in the 86 with me,” Zachary grabbed hold of his friend’s arm and shook him. “Dude, I’m telling you, it would be seriously awesome!”
Michael pulled away from him. “Let the 86 go!”
Just then, somebody chuckling walked up to them. “Didn’t realize you guys had such good taste! The 86 is a truly decent ride!” It was their colleague Ben, the third member of the dino ranger trio.
“See, listen to Ben. He knows what he’s talking about and he says I’m a genius!” Zach grinned.
“I didn’t say that!” Ben shot back. “I said the 86 is a good car.”
“Yeah, hear that?” Zach shot at Michael.
“Yeah, I heard it,” Michael pulled an innocent look, "but if I'm being completely honest, I don't think an 86 is that good! Who even owns that thing?"
Both Zach and Ben just stared with expressionless looks. The next thing Michael knew, he was held tight by Zach and forced to one of the diner's gas pumps.
Ben pulled the pump out. “Why don’t you drink some of this high octane…put some car power in your head?” he offered.
“How can you work here and not know what an 86 is? Don’t you ever open your eyes at work?” Zach shouted.
"Cut it out, I have seen an 86 before," Michael pulled free. "Don't you guys remember that Takumi, Itsuki and Iketani came to our dimension?"
Ben shrugged. "Yeah, that's true. I guess I’m not surprised. They were in…what, second or third grade when the 92 model came out?”
"Well," Michael thought. “Only car I knew was the old one I used for deliveries and patroling.”
Ben and Zach couldn’t believe what they were hearing. Zach retorted saying, “That which is a junker! Even if an 86 is old it’s not really old! It’s a vintage!” He turned back to Ben. “So, Ben, when we buy our 86 do you think you’d let us join your team? I’ve always dreamed of being on the Great Valley Speed-riders!”
“Well, ok. I'm pretty sure the others wouldn't mind. Oh…speaking of, it’s Saturday so the team’s gonna meet up at the mountains tonight for a couple practice runs! You guys should come along too!”
“You mean we’re actually invited?!” Zach now looked like he was going to melt down, but suddenly remembered something and drooped his head and shoulders again. “But we don’t have a car to get us there, and the bus doesn't run after our shift!”
“I can give you a ride, stupid,” Ben just replied, causing Zach to immediately perk up again. Ben showed them to the car.
“You’ll let us ride in your Nissian Slivia S13!?” Zach burst out. “I’m in! I am in! I am so totally frickin’ in!” He jumped on Michael. “And you’re going too, Mikey! I mean this kind of thing just doesn’t – ”
But while he was talking, Michael just stared at Zach going off his rocker. “I don’t know why he’s so excited,” he said to himself. “I never said anything about wanting to go.”
A little while later, Ben was pulling up a truck to the diner when Michael and Zachary came out, ready to head off for the day. “We’re outta here, Ben!” Zach squealed in excitement and jumped on Michael, who simply said, “We’ll catch you later, man!”
“Cool, pick you dudes up at the bus stop around eight,” Ben told them.
“See ya there!” a distant scream came from Zach.
Ben climbed up out of the truck and walked up to the building. The door opened and the boss of the diner walked up to him. “You’re taking them, huh? Which mountain you going to?”
“Come on, boss, you know the mountains near the mysterious beyond are the only mountains around here worth racing on!” Ben remarked. “And the Speed-riders are the fastest team in the Great Valley region anyway! We gotta defend our territory!”
“Well, you’re not the only guys I’ve heard around here saying that, you know,” the boss smirked. “Back when I was visiting Akina, there was this one fella. Everyone knew that he was the fastest, undisputed, couldn’t be beat. And after all these years, he still drives Mount Akina.”
“You’re kidding me,” Ben raised an eyebrow. “I know every last driver who goes up and down that course, and no offense but not a single one of them is an old-timer.”
“He just drives during a different time of the day than you and all your buddies,” the boss crossed his arms smugly. “And he’s got a good reason…he happens to work at the fujuwara tofu shop.”
Ben was stunned.
“At around 4am, he always leaves on his deliveries. He has to make his rounds taking tofu to all the hotels at Lake Akina. That guy’s downhill speed is something out of this world, and because this is his business the guy’s out there every day, rain or snow, it doesn’t matter…he knows the smaller stain of the asphalt of that road! Mark my words, Ben, the fastest downhill cars in Akina now a-days happens to be a 86 and 58 Plymouth Fury that deliver tofu.”
“A Tofu Shop 86 and Plymouth Fury!?” Ben was totally speechless.
Down at the Dino Ranger Mansion, a man stood on the side-street with a cigarette in his mouth while reading a newspaper. Footsteps nearby indicated someone was about to leave. “What do you think you’re doing?” the man asked. “Sneaking out?”
The man turned. It was Michael. “I got plans with Zachary. We’re just gonna hang out and stuff.”
“Don’t care what you do, just don’t make me drag your butt out of bed in the morning.”
“After the last time, I don’t think you need to remind me. See you in the morning, yeah?” Michael began walking off.
“Yeah.”
After a little while, the S13 and a few other fancy sports cars could be seen drifting neatly across the roads leading up to Great Valley Summit. Unfortunately, for one rider, not all was pleasant…
“Ahhhhhhhhhhh,” Michael cried from the S13’s backseat as the cars sped and drifted dangerously across the road.
Across the seat from Ben’s driver spot, Zach turned towards Michael. “Just slap a cork in it, Mike! You’re totally fine! Ben’s got the traits on!”
“YOU THINK I CARE?” Michael shot back at him. “I’ll scream all I want…I’m scared for my frickin’ life!”
“I’m used to it, man,” Ben just said coolly. “People tend to get scared first time they ride with a real street racer. Here goes a hairpin turn in second!”
Michael continued to wail as the turn came and Zach shouted, “Michael, will you please give it a rest!?”
A little later, the cars had all pulled over for a break. “Tonight, I’m gonna cut loose out there,” one of the drivers was saying. “For real, man. I’m sick of keeping everything slow.”
Michael was at the side, panting and relieved that the mayhem had stopped for the time being.
“You okay, buddy?” Ben asked him. “You look kind of sick…I didn’t think you’d freak like that. I was just in the mood to push the car so I may have done it a little hard for your taste.”
Zach came over, complaining as usual. “You’re such a frickin’ baby, Michael. What’s wrong with you? I thought you’d scream for your life on a roller coaster at the park!”
“I like roller coasters, Zachary…you know that,” Michael retorted. “This is something completely different…something I don’t think you could possibly understand. And even if I could explain it, you couldn’t wrap your head around it on this crazy fear I have inside. I don’t get it myself.”
Zach couldn’t reply to that.
Meanwhile, way back at the diner, it was shutting down for the night. The boss walked up to his car and was just about to unlock it when he turned at the sound of engines. Some completely different cars were speeding past the diner in the direction of the nearby Great Valley Mountain Range.
Woah! Who would have thought Project D would come all the way out here, the boss thought to himself. And if they’re heading up to the mountains at this time of night, something must be going down on the mountain.
Back where the Speed-riders were chilling, the cars finally turned up, pulling up at the side.
“Looks like we’ve got some company, boys,” Ben told his team-members. But as the cars pulled in, Ben’s face became concerned the moment he saw the logo “RedSuns” upon the lead ëThird-Generation’ RX-7 with vans behind it saying "Project D".
Why is Project D here? Ben thought. I’ve heard those guys have the fastest drivers in Gunma.
The drivers stepped out of the cars and turned to stare at the Speed-riders. Two of the drivers turned out to be both Ryosuke and Keisuke, the Takahashi brothers, leaders of the RedSuns and Project D. The brothers exchanged a glance for a moment before turning back.
“All right, listen up,” Keisuke shouted. “We’re Project D. Maybe you’ve heard about us. I don’t wanna start on sounding like a idiot, but the only thing I wanna know is who the fastest team or the fastest driver is on this prehistoric mountain range. Anybody wanna claim that?”
The Speed-riders started chattered amongst themselves. Ben spoke up finally. “We’re the Great Valley Speed-riders. I'm the President of the team and if you came up here looking for the fastest drivers on these mountains, well, you’re looking at ëem, hotshot!”
The Takahashi brothers shared another look at each other. “That was easier than I thought it’d be,” Keisuke smirked. “How about we hold a practice between our teams? We could do it between this mountain summit to the big city in the prehistoric valley. It could be fun.”
Ben, who hadn’t been expecting the challenge, looked a bit nervous.
“This is nuts,” one of the Speed-riders said. “They have no idea what they’re in for.” One of the other members agreed. "They even have no rights to disrepect this diemension!"
Behind them, Zachary beamed. “I knew this would be a sweet Friday night.” Michael just looked uninterested.
“What do you say, guys?” one of the Project D members spoke up. “We’ve been going up against the same people over and over…it’s gotten to be a little too routine for our taste. We wanna mix it up. Running against new teams will give us the chance to face a new challenge. We could exchange some ideas…maybe even make some friends. Sure, we’ll probably let a few team secrets slip here and there, but in the long run, I think we’ll all be able to improve. First, let’s do this along together. After that, each team sends one driver head-to-head in both uphill and downhill. Doesn’t matter who wins…let’s just build some solidarity between teams.”
“If he’s gonna put it politely how are we supposed to say no?” Ben had to run the question across the Speed-riders. One of the nearby drivers just crossed his arms.
“All right,” the Project D member continued. “What do you say we meet up next Saturday right here at ten o’clock?”
“Sure, you can count on it, pal,” Ben accepted.
“I think we’re just gonna take it easy on the runs tonight if that’s cool with you guys,” Keisuke said with a small hint of slyness in his voice.
“I told you this was gonna be awesome, didn’t I?” Zach told Michael.
Keisuke’s car immediately fired up and started to roll forward. Then with a sharp screech, the RX-7 spun a 180 and throttled down the road. The other Redsun and Project D cars followed in hot pursuit.
The Speed-riders member close to Ben grimaced. “If those punks think they can intimidate us, they got another thing coming!” “Yeah!” the other members agreed.
Within moments, the Speed-riders had rushed to their cars and were legging it in hot pursuit of Project D. “What are you gonna do, Ben?” Zachary demanded.
“I’m gonna keep my eye on the Takahashi brothers, see why people call them the fastest drivers in Akagi,” Ben replied.
Zach was stunned. “The Takahashi brothers? You mean the dudes who have been in all the magazines with all the pictures and all the crazy hot chicks?”
“Yeah, those are the ones,” Ben nodded. “They’re also known as the Rotary brothers.”
Then without another word, Ben rushed to his car and revved it up, ready to catch up to the teams. Zach quickly rushed up to the window. “What about us? Can we come with you?”
Ben’s face sagged a little. “Sorry, Zach, when I make a serious run I don’t like to go at it with passengers in the car. You two wait here. I’ll pick you up in a little bit.” He pushed his foot down and slammed the gear into place. The car vanished out of sight, leaving Michael and Zachary standing on the platform. Zach started to complain again. “Oooooohhhhhhhh, this is so frickin’ embarrassing, man! Why are we the only two losers up here without a car?”
Michael just stared into the distance. “Hey, Zach, is it really as much fun as you say it is to be a street racer? I don’t understand. Everybody seems so excited about it, but what’s the big deal?”
“No, I’m the one who doesn’t understand,” Zach spoke up. “You can’t hear those cars squealing around the corners, right? Trying desperately to catch up with each other! Pushing the limits! And that doesn’t get you worked up at all?”
Michael stared at him. “That should get me worked up?”
Meanwhile, somewhere upon the Great Valley, the phone could be heard ringing inside a building. “Dino Ranger Protection Services. How can I help you?” the receiver picked up the phone. A pause, and then, “Well, what a surprise. Yours was about the last voice I expected to hear.”
The person on the other end of the line turned out to be the boss from the diner. “It’s good to talk to you too. Is that how you greet an old friend you haven’t talked to in ages? You know, the other day, you passed me on your way back from a inspection and patrol of the Great Valley. I signalled you but you blew right by me like I was nobody.”
“Real sorry to disappoint you,” the man replied, “but that wasn’t me.”
“Had to be. It was your Plymouth.”
The man chuckled. "I'm afraid you're mistaken. I do own a Plymouth but I rarely drive it, and besides, I wasn’t the one driving last night. My friend Michael was doing the inpections.”
The boss was at that moment drinking out of his can when he heard the words. He immediately coughed up. “Wait, what did you say? Since when?”
“I guess Michael's been driving for me since two weeks,” came the curt reply. "You mean your son Takumi is running your Tofu shop as we speak?!" cried the Diner's manager, he was beyond words.
At the same time, the Speed-riders continued to pound around the wavy roads of the mountains beyond the Great Valley, intending to catch up to the rivalry team. But something appeared to be wrong. The majority of the drivers were gritting their teeth while they changed gears and spun their wheels.
“Dang…can’t keep up with these guys at all,” one driver complained as the sweat trickled down his face.
Ben grimaced from his own car as Project D shot by one by one in their own cars and faded into the distance. “Project D is faster than I thought! I’m pushing my limits here! And I still can’t keep up!”
As the cars continued to throttle around the roads, from high above on a road curve, the Takahashi brothers simply watched with disappointed faces.
“So brother, what are you thinking?” Keisuke asked.
“I think if that’s the best competition they can offer we can beat them without a practice run,” Ryosuke replied. “We’ll leave our top drivers at home next week. I’m even gonna pass on the race.”
“Well, if you’re not racing than I’m not gonna bother either,” Keisuke shrugged.
“No, you need to do it,” Ryosuke told him firmly. “I want you to set a record for this course…something these locals will never be able to break, not even on their best day. If we don’t do that, the return of Project D will never become extremely legendary.”
“Gotcha.”
“First thing we do is set new records for every single course in this prefecture.” Ryosuke then went on to name four other locations that would need for new records for Project D to set. “After that, we’ll have every record in this Prehistoric world. When we do, we’ll be legends. Then we can basically kick back and retire. That’s my plan for Project D. I call it the ëFastest in Universe’ project.”
And without another word, the Takahashi brothers jumped back in their cars, and took off like lightning.
Back over at the hangout, the Speed-riders were all feeling let-down.
“They’re pretty awesome,” one driver said. “And their style is completely different from ours. I just can’t believe how badly we got beaten on our own home-turf. It’s embarrassing.”
“They put some cash into their suspensions,” another spoke. “And their horse-power. No way we can compete with Project D…I’m telling ya!”
“But we can’t just say no either,” a third groaned.
“He’s right. We’ll look like total cowards if we walk now.”
“I get what you’re saying, but guts alone aren’t gonna beat these guys!”
“I know that. We need something more.”
Ben sighed and turned to the team. “It’s getting late, guys. Let’s go ahead and bail. We’ll get together tomorrow and figure this mess out.”
Not another word was said.
As the S13 drove down the road, all was solemn inside. “If you didn’t know, street racers don’t like losing,” Ben told Michael and Zachary. “Sometimes we get way too serious about our challenges. And the absolute worst thing that can happen is to lose to an outsider on your home course. It’s an unwritten law of street-racing.”
The car disappeared down the road.
Meanwhile, elsewhere on the mountain, most of Project D had taken off. The remaining cars were just about to take off, leaving only Keisuke’s RX-7 behind.
“Hey Keisuke, where’s your brother?” one of the drivers asked him.
“Ah, he went back to the hotel; been gone a while. We’re the only ones still left up here,” Keisuke told them. The tone of his voice hinted something like boredom.
“Looks like the sun is about to start coming up,” the driver looked out over the mountain.
“Maybe it’s time for us to start heading back to the hotel too,” Keisuke agreed.
As the RX-7 throttled down the roads of the mountain, Keisuke was having absolutely no trouble at all getting round the curves and changing the gears like a natural. He was totally bored; getting through this course was nothing to him. What he needed right about now was a good challenge, something to get him back into the force of concentration and buckling down for serious business…
But then, just for a moment, something caught his attention in the mirror. He looked, but he couldn’t see anything, nor hear anything compared to the sound of his own engine.
Keisuke dismissed it. “If I just stay on top of my game I’ll be driving the Project D anchor position and finally beat Takumi Fujuwara before they know it.” He pushed down on the accelerator.
But then, just as he whipped another bend, a light flickered in his mirror, and suddenly from way behind, a car came throttling into sight right behind the RX-7.
“Ah, they’re finally catching up,” Keisuke smirked.
But as the car came straight up towards the RX-7, his eyes widened as he noticed something. “That isn’t one of our guys! Is that a old Corvette or Impala? I can't tell with its beam on that bright!”
His eyes narrowed as the gap between their cars was now closing tightly. The mystery car attempted to overtake, but Keisuke kept the momentum as he lightly swerved to keep in front. “Nice driving, chief, but after two corners you won’t even be a speck in my rear-view mirror!” And he slammed down harder upon the throttle.
But as fast as he could go, it was obvious he couldn’t lose the car.
Then a bend appeared up ahead. Keisuke grinded and sent the RX-7 spinning sideways across the bend. But amazingly, so did the mystery car. In fact, it was now grinding right in line with the RX-7, as if they were sitting side-by-side in a parking lot.
“WHAT, is that a Plymouth Fury? You’re kidding me!” Keisuke gasped with a hint of worry as he now recognized the shape of the car. As the bend finished, he slammed on the accelerator to top gear. The Plymouth started to drop back a little, but quickly picked up the momentum as another bend approached, and once again, they slid sideways across it without even a problem.
Keisuke was now starting to panic. “It shouldn’t be this hard for my RX-7 to outrun a 50's era automoblie! This has gotta be some kind of nightmare and just hope I wake up soon! And I was the number two driver of the Akagi RedSuns, darn it!”
Another bend loomed up. Keisuke started to turn, but suddenly, as quick as a flash, the Plymouth shot past and overtook him as they shot past the bend.
Doesn’t that idiot even know this road? Keisuke thought. After this slow ride there’s a sharp left. There’s a ravine on the other side…he’s gotta hit the brakes!
The Plymouth continued to spin its rear wheels as it spun down the road with the RX-7 in hot pursuit. Keisuke’s teeth gritted. “I knew it…that freaking idiot’s going way too fast! There’s no room to slow down…he’s going in to that guard-rail!”
Then suddenly, much to Keisuke’s astonishment, the Plymouth seemed to jerk as if it was turning to the right, and then sharply spun left, moving sideways towards the guard-rail before shooting forwards and barely missing it by inches, staying in perfect line with the road.
“Whoa! What the heck??” Keisuke’s mind unravelled that moment in slow-motion. “Inertia drift!?”
Time seems to stop short as the Plymouth Fury is seen performing the drift with the RX-7 behind it.
To be continued...
