Its Short, its ROUGH. Everytime i type it out i cringe cause my wirting skills are dogwater. But my passion for making this story into reality pushes me to get better and embrace the bad wiritng. Sorry again for the bad wiritng!
Phantom Drift
Chapter 1: destiny knocks
Whenever my father would tell me his tales from his days in the Turbo racing league. I would daydream about what I could do if I had a chance to race, what I would do with a drift gear in my hand. My love of the sport started with my father. It blossomed into genuine passion. We would always go to the races whenever my father was off on Sundays. Him and I would always grab popcorn to share along with some lemonade. From when the race starts to when it finishes, I was always watching. I didn’t know any of the racers names at the time but I didn’t really care. I all wanted to see them battle it out for the top spot. My father would always explain the complex maneuvers to me, key words or simple slang. It honestly felt like a coach was talking to me though the flow of it all. He would eventually give me a skateboard for my tenth birthday. Drift gear racing is basically racing skateboards with rocket powered engines. I loved that thing. We immediately went to try it out. I fell a lot, but I never stopped riding that thing. My father smiled at me as I continued to ride. I’m sure he was proud of me, at least I hope he was. I wanted to be like him. A pro in the Turbo race league. But even more than that, I wanted to be free. Riding that skateboard made me realize that I felt a bliss I haven’t felt. It’s my way of expression. A way for me to get away from the world. To be free! Last time I saw him. He told me to do what makes me happy, and to never let others hold my wings down.
That was over nine years ago now. I still ride the same board he gave me but it’s so beat up I’m surprised it still works. I have replaced so many parts just to make sure it keeps going. The day my father went missing was probably one of the worst days I have experienced. My mother comforted me, police attempted to find him but never did. Old racing friends would check up on me when they could. After three years we had a closed casket funeral. He was never found. I felt myself entering a hole of depression and self doubt. I honestly didn’t know what to do with myself. That night I had a dream, it was my father telling me the same thing he said before he disappeared.
“dont let others hold your wings down”
I woke up and cried to myself. But I refocused. I grabbed my skateboard and I rode. Instead of being stuck I used that board to push me forward. When I wasn’t at school, I was in the streets riding and keeping busy. My mother works for a sports media company so she is often busy. Not really home much. I didn’t let that stop me from keeping the house clean, cooking, doing chores. I still try to go to the Turbo league races. Most of the time I just watched it on TV. Or I would sneak into the stadiums sometimes. Not something I’m proud of. But I wanted to be involved. It always reminds me of my father so I couldn’t stay away.
Now that I’m eighteen. Fresh out of high school, I really had nothing going for me other than riding around Ventura Bay. I often found myself sneaking into the same stadium where the races were always held. All I would do is ride around. It allowed me to remember the good old days watching these races with him. I shouldn’t be here since its trespassing. My father probably wouldn’t approve. but if I’m being honest I didn’t care at that moment. I just needed to be here. It was also a reminder of my goal of being a pro racer someday. I would be the one riding this track. I felt water droplets starting to fall. We were in need of rain. Ventura bay tends to have very sunny weather most of the year. It’s a nice vacation spot for that reason. I grabbed my beat up board to start to ride out of here and back home.
“HOLD IT” My body booked it towards the exit. I didn’t need to look to know the cops were behind me. I could hear at least two of them chasing after me, their boots stomping the concrete as they attempted to get closer. The moment I was back on the street, I grabbed the back of the car to use it to get away quickly. I waited a few blocks before letting go. I kept riding. Not knowing where I was going. Not knowing if they were still chasing. The farther I am from the stadium the more lost I become. I was in my head too much. I kept going forward without much of a plan. I had no idea where I was going to end up. Turns out I would end up running straight into the police. They were still looking for me, it turns out. If only I was paying attention I probably would have gotten away with it.
“Thought you could get away huh?” One of the cops was out of breath as they pinned me down. I could feel the cold metal of the handcuffs as they put me in the back of the cop car. Instead of going to the nearest station. We were sitting there. One was on the phone while the other kept watch as if I could escape this situation.
“Hope you know you’re in big trouble. Especially for trespassing.”
I didn’t flinch. I kept staring at the window.
“You will find out soon enough how much shit you’re in.”
A black car with tinted windows pulled forward not long after. A tall man with a very expensive looking suit stepped out of the car.
“We meet again young man”
Victor Sullivan didn’t show a hint of emotion. He is an old racing friend of my father. He is also the current CEO and owner of the TRL league. I remember seeing him at the funeral. He didn’t say much to me back then. One of the cops looked surprised at Victor’s response.
“You know this kid sir? we found him trespassing at the stadium.”
“I do, you can let him go.”
Both of the cops looked disappointed at his answer but did as they were told.
“You’re not going to press charges? Like at all? They spoke up again as they were releasing me.
Victor didn’t say anything. A simple look made them shut up real quick. I couldn’t help but chuckle. They gave me back my board.
“Come, I will take you home. The rain is going to pick up soon.” The cops went back on patrol. Before I jumped into Victor’s car, I spotted a flyer. It was related to the TRL so I quickly swiped it off a nearby wall.
“Thank you sir.”
I said as I climbed into the Lincoln SUV.
As Victor drove me home, silence hung in the air.
I broke it “I know I shouldn’t have trespassed.”
“I know.”
“So why let me off so easily?”
“Becsuse felt generous. This isn’t the first time I have caught you doing this. And I understand why you are doing it. But please don’t make a habit of getting caught.”
I opened my mouth but nothing left it. He used very specific words. “Don’t make a habit of getting caught”. That shocked me.
“We should be at your place soon. Logan please stay out of trouble son. Find something to do. Maybe a job. Something to keep you busy.”
I laughed.
“I make no promises sir”
Victor simply chuckled. At my response.
I walked out of his car and waved him goodbye before heading inside. Mom still wasn’t home. I jumped on the couch while I pulled out that flyer. It was a flyer for a showcase. It’s for new and up and coming racers who are going to participate in the try out trials next week. Sponsors, fans, anyone is welcome to join and watch these racers and their drift gear. The gears would turn. I definitely wanted to go. I wanted to watch to see what it takes to be a racer like them. I ran to the kitchen to find something to eat as I continued to plan. I was going to go to this event.
After dropping off Logan. Victor Sullivan drove to the headquarters for the TRL in downtown Ventura bay. He parked, rushed inside into his office on the top floor. After opening the door to his office, Dominic “dom” Reyes stood at his desk.
“You know why I’m here right?” Dom’s voice was calm yet firm. He wore a white lab coat, he was a little shorter then Victor and not as bulky. But he had a wicked mustache, a shaved head, a kin to a buzz cut and strong legs.
“I do, it’s the same reason you come into my office every other week for.” Victor walked past Dom to sit at his desk.
“You haven’t changed at all.” Dom’s voice was solid but was emotionally charged.
“Stole the words from out of my mouth. You’re a stubborn fool like always.”
The air was tense. Dom signed and Victor smiled.
“Victor, I can’t hate you. Ever since our racing days I have huge respect for you. Always will.”
Victor seemed to nod in agreement.
“I feel the same about you. You’re the smartest engineer I have ever seen. Even smarter than the ones who work under me. Yet you refuse to work under me.”
Dom gave victor a sharp look
“sure, I would have access to your fancy tech, your million dollar facilities. Its a dream environment for any engineer with sense.”
Victor looked as if he knew what Dom was going to say next.
“We both know you have zero of it.”
Dom couldn’t help but laugh.
“You know me better than most. Only you and sage can claim that. But I have always said: Victor kills creativity. Frankly that hasn’t changed. You are so straight laced it hurts.”
“Your brand of creativity is reckless. It needs structure.”
Dom snapped back with a passionate response.
“Your type of structure is a prison. Unless you follow what Victor Sullivan says? You won’t get far. That is why I refuse to work for you. What I do is my art. Working on the drift gear like I do is my love. It excites me to do what I do.”
Victor continued to look at his old friend.
“This is why I respect you. Your stubborn like me. We have different values but we both wont let go of set values. This is why we get along but it’s also why we would clash so harshly.”
Dom and Victor looked at each other for a while. A tale as old as them both.
“I stick to freedom, you stick with structure.”
Dom would begin to walk out of his office.
“Have you managed to find a rider to test your experimental gear?”
Dom flinched. He stood at the entrance chewing at the answer.
“I think you know the answer.”
Victor smirked with confidence. Dom left Victor’s office in defeat.
Victor quickly moved on to the next project. On his pad he had a list of the racers that would be participating in the upcoming showcase. He looked at the list for a long time. One of the names he was very familiar with.
“Slias….”
Later that week, Logan was riding around the city on his skateboard. He made a quick turn into the next street. The salty air hit his nose as he rode down to the stadium where the showcase was being held. With each inch he rode, the more likely he felt his board was going to shatter. Fresh tape and repairs however that could only go so far. The next turn was the downward hill. The flyer on his hand would shake as the wind hit fast. Faster and faster he would go. He held his left arm out as he got closer to the bottom. Even at decent speed, he grabbed the pole to redirect his momentum towards the stadium. The crowds of people seemed to only get bigger the closer he got. He did his best to slow down.
“Move unless you want to get hit!”
People were rushing out of his way. Some cursed at him but he kept moving. He could see his goal in sight. Soon then he heard a crack under his feet. He was thrown off his trusty steed as he crashed into a bush. Running over he saw how bad the damage was. Cut down the middle perfectly. He looked at it as if it would fix itself. All he could do was put the broken pieces into his bag. The stadium was in sight. Unfortunately, the gate was locked. He swore the flyer said it was open to the public. He really didn’t have time to think about it too much. He circled around the backside to find another way in. More and more locked gates. Logan’s brain would start to chew. His eyes caught a door, he thought if he should pick the lock. But to his shock the door was unlocked. This door turns out, lead into the locker room. It smelled like cleaning chemicals. Red lockers with benches. even had a shower to go along with it. He slowly made his way through the fairly huge locker room. After looking around he found the charging stations for the Drift gears. Most of them were empty. Sides one. This lonely gear seemed almost transparent. Like it has an albino shell. It had a slim and straight lined exterior. It honestly looked like ghost gear.
“What even?”
Curiously got the best of me. I got closer, close enough to smell it. I put my hands on the thing. My heart jumped into my throat when it roared to life. Never have I ever seen a gear up this close. I know what I was doing was stupid but in all of the excitement I grabbed it.
“I will return it.”
It hummed, almost like it was alive or something. It was heavy. The mechanics of a drift gear were close enough to rockets. All of that would lead to them being weighed to a certain extend. But it wasn’t anything I couldn’t handle. The moment I walked into the tunnel, I could see the sun. On the track were a handful of racers. They weren’t doing anything serious. It seemed like they were just showing off their gear and trying to showcase their abilities to potential sponsors for the upcoming season. A handful of people sat in the stands as well. Probably a mix of sponsors, Scouts, coaches.
“Now I need to find a place I can sit to watch these guys on action”
Before moving forward to find a place to hide, I heard something. I didn’t realize what it was until the ghost gear jerked me forward. The thrusters turned on. We both started to fly onto the track. I got the attention of everyone as I screamed out of pure surprise.
I was barely hanging on to the damn thing, I struggled to get to my feet, I needed to get stable and fast. One of the racers I saw before quickly rode up next to me. He had slick, spiky hair. He looked Korean. He wore a shirt with a skull on it with some Jean shorts.
“get up already!”
He had a huge smile on his face as if he was anticipating something. I slowly got on my feet. The ghost gear would start to slow down. It felt similar to riding a skateboard. Only I had to use all of my strength just to stay on my feet. I could only imagine trying to make turns at high speeds.
“Good! It’s pretty clear you’re a complete newbie. That’s ok! I’m glad you’re here. It was getting boring here anyway. You definitely made things more interesting.”
I barely heard what he was saying due to the wind passing between us.
“The names Jin Park. Nice to meet you jelly legs.”
As he introduced himself I caught myself slipping. It took everything I had to simply stay upright.
“The name Logan Miles.”
I managed to figure out how to stop the damn thing and turn around.
“Well Logan, hope you’re ready for what comes next.”
Jin smiled as he rode the other racers. He drove up to a girl who was recording with her phone, well it looked like she was anyway.
With my legs on fire, I ultimately decided to give it a chance. I could hear the people in the stands begin to riot after my abrupt arrival. But I rode on. I took it slow, since I have no clue how to ride these things. But my years of riding my board was enough to do this much. It felt surreal to ride one. I swore I would never get the chance to ride a real drift gear. My face was sore from how big my smile was. After one lap, I took it up a level. I leaned forward to go faster. The gear responded quickly. Its honesty started to speed up even before I began to learn. It’s like it knew what I wanted to do even before I knew it. I felt the wind rushing past me. I jumped to grind on a nearby rail. The gear responded. I was surprised how much easier this felt then it probably should be. I jumped off as soon as I wanted to turn the corner. The sponsors and other races were just watching me. Most of them were laughing at me for the most part. One of the racers was even recording me. But I continued on.
As I went for a third lap, I could feel my legs getting weak. Before I could think, I noticed something falling from the ceiling of the stadium. Somehow no one else noticed it. I looked back to see it was heading straight for the girl who was recording me. I wasn’t even close to her, I was moving forward. It shouldn’t have been possible to turn in that position. My mind went blank. If I’m being honest I don’t know what happened at that moment. But I wanted nothing more than to save her. Before I even could think about what I should do next, I was somehow in the middle of dashing towards the racers who were recording me right before the piece of the stadium could crush her.
submitted by /u/Xlhype
[link] [comments]