Chapter 14

Six Years Ago

Weiss was looking to make her mark in F2. She did not want to do it with her father's team, but she did need money. Fortunately her sister Winter was happy to set her up with a car to drive and a crew to prepare it. She had run a few races and done rather well with a few podiums and a win. Now with the season about half over, it was time for her home race. Atlasport was the sometime home of the Atlas Grand Prix. It was very different from the Atlas Circuit with massive elevation changes and a focus on handling over outright speed. Weiss had raced at the track in F3 the year before and won, so she was looking forward to running an F2 car there.

Qualifying was a bit of a disappointment. In wet conditions Weiss had only managed fifth, tying her worst start of the season. She was never that great at racing in the rain, but the forecast for race day was better. Sure enough it was sunny and Weiss was confident. Passing would be tricky but there were a few decent spots. If practice times were anything to go by, Weiss was fast enough to win. She had the best car and as far as she was concerned, she was the best driver. There was nothing to worry about.

The flag dropped and the cars were off. Weiss got a good start and made it to the first turn fourth. She fell in line as the track corkscrewed down and to the right. She looked to make a pass on the following straight, but there was no good opportunity so she got back in line again as the track dove down to the left. Next was a sweeping right and Weiss knew it was not a realistic passing opportunity. She bided her time, following the cars ahead as they rocketed down the straight. A flat-out, steeply downhill left was next. After that was Weiss' chance to pass. The track reached the bottom of a valley before rising up to a pair of tight right-handers that together formed what was effectively a double-apex hairpin. Weiss dove to the right just before the first of the pair and got beside the third place driver. She made the place her own as she exited the second of the corners and accelerated onto the backstretch. The backstretch started out uphill, winding through the forest as it headed for a fast and sweeping right-hander. The second place driver decided to make a passing attempt. The leader blocked but it was far too late.

The cars came together, shooting off the track to the right and slamming into the armco that ran near the track on both sides. The leader's car began flipping, shedding parts as it tumbled back across the track right in front of Weiss. She cut right as the car rolled left. She missed the car but not the debris. A piece of metal hit Weiss in the face, just below the brim of her helmet on the left side. It sliced her face from her hairline down to her cheek, shattering her goggles and cutting across her eye.

Weiss drove on stunned. She let off the throttle. As cars streamed past all she could see with her left eye was blood splattered across her broken goggles. But that was a good sign. If she could see blood her eye was intact. What the rest of her face looked like she could only guess. She continued on, driving slowly until she spotted an ambulance. She turned onto the access road and parked her car beside it. She calmly exited her car and walked to the waiting medics. When they saw her the color drained from their faces. From their reaction Weiss knew it was bad.

Weiss' injury looked a lot worse than it actually was. She got a line of stitches and did not even miss the next race. She was left with a very visible scar. Her father was furious and threatened to sue just about everyone involved, from the track to the drivers in the crash to the medics who had attended to Weiss. Winter eventually talked some sense into him. Afterwards, Weiss was not the same driver. She had faced down death and disfigurement and come away with a permanent reminder of the clash. Before she had driven with the sort of passion and reckless abandon that her sister shared. After the accident she was much calmer. She was a tactician. She was also much faster.

Present Day

Weiss loathed Atlasport. She had only had to race there a few times since her F2 incident - it shared the Atlas GP with other tracks and so was not on the schedule every year - but each time she had to go back the trip came with painful memories. Before the accident she was renowned for her beauty - and still was even with her scar - but when she visited the track she could not help but feel ugly. In public she said her scar was a badge of honor, proof that she was tough and a true race car driver. In private she hated it. It was a reminder of just how close she had come to losing everything, and of the ever-present danger that went along with her profession.

This year though, Weiss had reason to look forward to racing at Atlasport. The track was right in Team Juniper's wheelhouse. She expected that Pyrrha would get the better of her, but she still had a five point cushion. If she could stay close it would be enough, and she was confident that she could stay close. Beacon GP had had a mediocre showing the last time F1 had visited Atlasport and she knew the Schnee Automotive cars were not well suited to the circuit. Her old team had made great strides since, but Team Juniper were the recognized masters of the track and Weiss saw no reason why this race should be any different.

"You've got something on your mind again." Pyrrha observed.

Yang had been staring off into space, lost in thought, but snapped back to reality. "Oh, yeah, don't worry about it." Yang said. "It has nothing to do with racing. After Forever Fall I finally feel like everything's right with that. Ruby's happy and she's not afraid anymore. The two of us got through that hellish race. I'm going to win the championship…"

"You're going to win huh?" Pyrrha cut her off. "Not if I can do anything about it."

"I figured you'd say that." Yang laughed. "I've seen this conversation before. My parents had it all the time. You'd think being rivals would have strained their relationship, but if anything it brought them closer together. I saw them argue about a lot, you know, the usual stuff couples argue about, but I never saw them argue about racing. There was the occasional friendly jab and a joke at the other's expense here and there, but it was always just fun." She paused, looking into the distance as if reminiscing. Her gaze snapped back to Pyrrha, a big smile on her face. "You don't have a chance of beating me by the way."

"You know, I still can't believe Ruby threw up on the podium." Pyrrha said.

"Yeah, well, drivers are head cases." Yang said. "Just look at the two of us."

If practice was any indication, it would be a close one. The pairs from Beacon GP and Team Juniper were basically dead even, swapping fast laps and constantly pushing the pace as practice wore on. At the end of the third practice Pyrrha was the fastest, but only just. The surprise came in fifth where May was significantly faster than Winter. Sure, there was a sizable gap to the top 4, but an equally large gap back to sixth. Winter was in danger of losing out to SeaMonkeys F1 but May was well clear. Something about the track apparently agreed with her. Winter was disappointed to have been outrun, but she was happy to see that the team would be in good hands following her retirement.

No one was surprised when qualifying was as close as practice. In the waning moments Ruby led from Pyrrha, Yang and Weiss. May backed up her practice pace and was almost as quick as the top four. Then there was Winter with Sun and Neptune hot on her heels. A few other drivers had put up good times but they were not going to compete with the top 8. Yang desperately wanted to win the pole. At the very least she had to beat Pyrrha. She had to show Pyrrha that she would not have it her own way as she had two years earlier. Yang went out for one last run.

Yang slowed on entry to the final corner, a right-hander called Weiss. She nailed the throttle and got a good run off with just a little wheelspin. After crossing the line to start her lap she was hard on the brakes, diving down and to the right for the first corner. With the wall separating the pits from the track on the inside, it was totally blind and Yang had to trust that there was not a slow or stopped car there. There was not and she blasted out of the corner. She barely lifted for the next corner - Winter - a sweeping downhill left. She had to brake harder as the hill bottomed out and the track wound back to the right for the tight corner called Mantle. The corner seemed to go on forever and Yang had to wait a long time before really getting back on the throttle. When she finally did the back end stepped out as the tires spun but she quickly corrected and got a decent launch onto the straight. The track rose slightly before dropping away to the left for a flat-out sweeper. Yang positioned her car on the left edge of the track and braked hard for the extremely sharp twin right-handers called Vine. She clipped the first apex and swung wide, still braking as she slung her car into the tighter of the two corners. She had no wheelspin for her launch onto the long and critical backstretch. She ran uphill as the track meandered through the woods. As she topped the crest she braked again for the first corner of the Esses. It was a fast and sweeping right-hander but Yang had to slow to set up for the following and much slower left. She had to compromise her line in that corner as well to set up for Weiss. She swung her car around the final turn and rocketed out onto the frontstretch and across the line to complete her lap.

Yang nailed it. She took the pole position just ahead of Pyrrha. Weiss and Ruby followed with May close behind. Sun just beat Winter for sixth and Neptune ended up eighth. Pyrrha was disappointed. Of the frontrunners she was the lowest on points and needed a win to keep her championship hopes alive. Passing at Atlasport was possible but not easy. May was ecstatic. She had finally beaten Winter in a straight up, fair fight. With a little luck she might even end up with a podium finish. Winter was not thrilled but not surprised. Atlasport had never been one of her better tracks. Ruby was disappointed too. She had been unable to improve on her previous best lap time and as a result was beaten out by the three other fast runners. After several races where she had only gotten faster and faster, it was a setback she had not foreseen. Still, all would be well if she could turn it around in the race.

Ruby got all the puke out before heading for the grid. At least she hoped she had gotten it all out. Throwing up on the podium had been embarrassing to say the least. In any case, that was in the past. Ruby had to focus on the race at hand. She had dug herself a hole in qualifying and it would not be easy to work herself out during the race. Unfortunately, the best opportunity to pass - the start - would likely not be realistic. The run to the first corner was too short to make up much ground so, unless the drivers in front of her made serious mistakes, Ruby would probably have to make her passes the old fashioned way.

The cars rolled around the track for their parade lap before forming up on the grid. The starter raised his flag and the drivers revved their engines. After a longer than usual wait, the flag dropped and the race was on. Pyrrha got a better start than Yang and the pair headed into the first turn side-by-side. Pyrrha had the preferred line on the right but Yang kept her pinched to the inside edge of the track. They exited the corner even but Yang had more momentum and the line for turn 2 so Pyrrha conceded the position, for now. Weiss and Ruby got decent starts and rounded the first corner third and fourth. May got a blinding start but the short run to the corner stymied her efforts. Sun slipped through the first corner ahead of Winter with Neptune just behind.

Pyrrha was immediately on the attack. While the drivers' tires and brakes were still cold her superior aerodynamics would give her a temporary edge. She peeked to the right on the entry to Mantle but it was more of a decoy than a real passing attempt. Yang was not fooled and Pyrrha had to fall in line again. As they braked hard uphill for Vine Pyrrha shot up the right side. It was an overly ambitious move and she slid wide, allowing Yang to slip back into the lead as they thundered onto the backstretch. Pyrrha tucked in behind Yang to draft as they approached The Esses but she decided not to attack. Weiss was close now and Pyrrha could not afford to lose a position with a badly executed passing attempt.

Ruby was finding it difficult to keep up with Weiss over the early laps. It was frustrating. She had never really had trouble keeping up with the drivers that were effectively her corporate teammates before. May was having no such difficulty. Despite her car's general lack of grip she was all over Ruby. Further back, Neptune had gotten past a struggling Winter, but May was making the car work in a way her teammate could not. As Ruby and May raced down the backstretch on lap 9, May got a good run. Ruby preemptively took the inside line to block but May shot to her left. When they reached The Esses May powered around on the outside, drifting her car through the right-hander at a scary angle. Somehow she held on and secured the position.

A few laps later May caught up to Weiss. Weiss had never anticipated seeing May's car in her mirror after how slow the Schnee Automotive pair had been all weekend. Weiss had fallen back from Yang and Pyrrha but she was still posting fast times. May was just faster. Weiss made passing much harder than Ruby had. She knew the proper lines to take for defense and when she could ignore May's feints. Lap after lap May looked for an opening but Weiss was not going to give her anything. The pair's battle allowed Ruby to close in. May knew she needed to make the pass soon or else have to deal with a three way battle.

On lap 37 of 90, Weiss and May were still nose-to-tail. Weiss rounded turn 1 then edged to the right side of the track to prepare for Winter corner. There was no need to block because it was basically impossible to pass there. That did not stop May from trying. She stepped out to the left, trying to take the inside line, but had to slow too much for the corner because of her shallow entry. Weiss was able to cut across the track in front of her as they entered the turn. That was not the worst of it. The sudden loss of downforce on the front of May's car as Weiss disrupted the airflow caused it to become unsettled. It understeered toward the outside edge of the track and when May got out of the throttle and turned to correct it, the car snap-oversteered. May spun off into the grass and slid inexorably into the tire-fronted concrete barrier. It was not a hard hit, but it was the end of her race. May was furious with herself. She had been pushing the car too hard. She had been pushing herself too hard. The desire to beat Winter had distracted her from the most important goal: finish the race.

Now that she did not have to worry about May, Weiss began pulling away from Ruby again. Up front, however, things were closer. May's extended battle with Weiss had opened up a big gap to the lead pair. Pyrrha had spent much of the intervening forty laps hanging back and saving her equipment. Now as the race passed its halfway point, it was time to attack once again. Pyrrha had the faster car and knew it. She just needed to find the right place to make a pass. Eventually she settled on the backstretch and The Esses. If she could get a good enough draft to get beside Yang's car, she was confident she could beat her through the corner no matter which line she had. It was just about setting it up now. She bided her time, making dummy runs to try to time the move. Yang knew Pyrrha was up to something but there was nothing she could do other than hopefully block the move when it came.

Sun had a scary incident when his suspension failed in the left-hander before Vine. Under maximum load at the bottom of the valley, his right-front suspension - damaged from hitting the kerbs too hard - collapsed. His car skidded off the track to the right, ran through the grass then shot back across the track as it wound across his path. His car got briefly airborne before slamming into the tire-fronted concrete barrier head-on. The front end of his car was crushed, enough so that his pedals had moved, but he was not seriously hurt. He limped out of the car with a sprained ankle and some nasty bruises on his feet.

Winter dropped back further and further. Her car did not have good single lap pace and she was finding that it did not have long run pace either. In fact, the long run pace was even worse. Soon she was battling with Gwen who was having the best race of her career. Winter knew it was a foregone conclusion. If she got into a battle with Gwen, one she knew she would eventually lose, it would cost both of them time. That would allow more drivers to catch up and cost Winter more positions. As they exited Weiss corner onto the frontstretch, Winter pulled over to the right and lifted, allowing Gwen to pass without costing either driver much time.

On lap 79 Pyrrha was ready to make her move. She hung back a little through Vine and got a good run off. Combined with the draft off of Yang's car, she built up a powerful head of steam. Yang saw her coming and blocked right. Pyrrha had expected the move and never intended to pass on that side. She swept to the left of Yang, the pair running side-by-side as they braked for the first of The Esses. Yang had the preferred line on the right for the right-hander but Pyrrha hung tough. Yang pulled ahead slightly despite Pyrrha's best efforts, and they entered the second corner still side-by-side. Now Pyrrha was on the preferred line for the left-hander and she began to edge ahead. Still the battle was not decided. In Weiss corner Yang had the preferred line for the right-hander, but Pyrrha kept her pinched to the inside edge of the track. Yang spun her tires badly as she attempted to accelerate out and it was all Pyrrha needed. She beat Yang to turn 1 to secure the lead.

In the closing laps Pyrrha pulled away from Yang. Their cars and driving skills may have been nearly even, but Yang had used up her tires. Weiss was still a distant third with Ruby a still more distant fourth at the finish. Neptune took fifth and Gwen took the final point in sixth. Winter, Fox, Reese and Mercury rounded out the top 10. Winter's poor finish meant she would likely lose the championship. She had hoped to retire on top but from the beginning of the year she had been realistic about her chances. The other drivers were younger than she was, and they were damn good besides. Still, with one race to go she could hold her head high. She was not retiring as some washed-up has-been. She was a champion, still fighting for the title with the young guns. The rest of the championship race was incredibly close with a three-way tie for first and Ruby only two points back of that. Though she considered herself out of the running, Winter was only four points back. The problem was that if any of the lead three finished second, it would not matter what Winter did, and she was not expecting to be fast at Mountain Glenn anyway. She could dream, but another title was highly unlikely.

Standing after ten races:

1st - Pyrrha Nikos - 37

1st - Yang Xiao-Long - 37

1st - Weiss Schnee - 37

4th - Ruby Rose - 35

5th - Winter Schnee - 33

6th - May Zedong - 27

7th - Sun Wukong - 15

8th - Reese Chloris - 8

8th - Neptune Vasilias - 8

10th - Arslan Atlan - 4

10th - Scarlet David - 4

12th - Coco Adel - 2

13th - Fox Alistair - 1

13th - Gwen Darcy - 1

13th - Dew Gayl - 1

Inspirations

- Atlasport is based on Mosport, now Canadian Tire Motorsports Park.

- The Atlas Grand Prix stands in for the Canadian GP. It was the Mexican GP in my previous story, but with no Mexican GP in 1971 and a limited number of locations in the RWBY universe, I decided to switch it over.

- I can tell you for a fact that turn 1 at Mosport is blind. I used to be a professional sim racer (that's racing on the PC for real money). One race I came flying around turn 1 to find a car stopped sideways right on the racing line. I nailed it in the door and frontflipped over it. Thank God it was only a virtual race because that would have hurt me like hell and probably killed the guy I hit if it was real.

- Foot and leg injuries are the most common injuries sustained in both racing car and road accidents.

Inaccuracies and Anachronisms

- International F2 did not exist in 1965.

- There was no armco at Mosport in 1965.

- It was hard to find much solid info on Mosport from 1971, so I used a more modern layout. As such there is probably too much in the way of concrete barriers and not enough dirt banks.

- A three-way tie heading into the final race would be unprecedented, particularly in this era when championships were routinely decided with several races remaining.