Chapter 7

Twenty-One Years Ago

Summer and Taiyang had been dating for a few months already when the F1 circus arrived at the Forever Fall Forest Circuit. They were both in the title hunt too. Neither was in a great position as far as the championship was concerned, both needing wins and help, but they were in with a shot and sometimes that was enough. Unfortunately their cars were not looking great for this race. Schnee Automotive had the engine power as it always did and their customer cars, usually relegated to the midfield, were suddenly putting up top times. The Beacon GP duo could keep up with the help of the draft, but a win would be highly unlikely. If Schnee Automotive's top driver, James Ironwood, scored any points while Summer or Taiyang failed to win, the championship would be his.

Beacon GP's qualifying results were predictably poor. Summer secured eleventh with Taiyang fourteenth. James was on pole with his teammate beside him. Then came a slew of Schnee-powered cars and even a few cars running the same engines Beacon GP used. The problem was the Beacon GP car was fantastic for handling the corners, but it was not particularly fast in a straight line. Straight line speed was all that really mattered at Forever Fall. Luck or strategy might still put them on top, but it looked like it would be a long race.

It would be a longer race for some than others. By halfway the Beacon GP pair had worked their way up to the cusp of the points-paying positions. They used the draft to dice with the Schnee-powered cars in a race in which any one of ten or so drivers had a legitimate shot at the win. James kept his car in the top three and seemed to be able to take the lead at will. Then the Schnee Automotive romp began to unravel. James' teammate's engine failed. Two more cars running Schnee engines dropped out with mechanical issues. Other cars besides began to fall by the wayside as the high speeds took their toll on the relatively fragile engines.

Engine wear was not the only thing to worry about. With 18 laps remaining Taiyang and Summer were third and fourth respectively. They rounded the track's final corner, an unwinding right-hander named Parabola. By corner exit cars were already well above 100 mph on their way to speeds that approached 200 on the long straight that followed. It was critical to get a good launch off the corner to get a fast run down the straight. Like most drivers Taiyang compromised on his corner entry a bit to make a better exit. He hit the apex and was hard on the throttle, the back end of his car squirming as it struggled for grip. It settled as he swung out toward the outside of the track for corner exit.

Bang! Taiyang's left-front tire failed. He was suddenly a passenger as the car went straight on, crossed the narrow grass verge and slammed into the armco just beyond. The left-side wheels were shorn off and the fuel tank ruptured, the car bursting into flames as it skidded along on its belly. It hit a bump and flipped onto its left side, staying there as it continued to slide on. When Taiyang's car finally came to rest it was still on its side burning and in the middle of the track.

Summer was horrified. To say she loved Taiyang would have been a bit premature. She did care about him deeply though. Boyfriend or not, he was a good friend. Summer had seen much tamer accidents that had killed drivers and fire was every driver's worst nightmare. Most drivers learned early on that it was unwise to get attached to their fellows, they were likely to see many of them killed. At the same time every driver made at least a few close friends among the others. It was impossible not to. They shared in the same dangers and no one outside the racing world could truly understand what they went through or how they felt. When someone was killed or maimed, there would always be those crushed by it.

Summer drove on. What was she to do? As much as she cared for Taiyang, as good a friend as he was, he was still just another driver and he knew the risks. Summer needed to win the race to have a realistic shot at the title and Taiyang would not want her to give that up on his account. When she got back around the track Taiyang's car was still burning where it had come to rest. The drivers hardly slowed for the yellow flags being waved by the corner workers, rocketing around the flaming hulk. It was empty anyway. Somehow Taiyang had both survived the crash and extricated himself from the car. Then, braving the traffic, he had crossed the track. Now he stood leaning against the armco on the right side. Summer glanced at him as she passed. She could not believe it. Not only was he alive and apparently unhurt, he was laughing, joking around with a track worker who had come to check on him. Unbelievable.

That was the end of Taiyang's title hopes for the year, but at least he was alive. Summer finished second in the race to James. She was technically not eliminated from the championship, but it was not to be. James would fall out in the following race at Mountain Glenn and Summer took the win, but James returned to win his and Schnee Automotive's home race in Atlas to lock up the title. In the offseason Summer and Taiyang were married. She would end up missing the following season, pregnant with Taiyang's child. She and Taiyang had taken the ultimate leap and there was no turning back. Luckily death was something that happened to other people, so what did they really have to worry about?

Present Day

Ruby had never been to, let alone driven, the Beacon Circuit, site of the Vale Kingdom Grand Prix. That was true of most of the tracks on the schedule. She had raced just about every track on Patch, but never driven outside the island with the exception of her adventure in Vacuo, and only attended a few of Yang's international races. It was to be her second F1 race. After the catastrophe that had been the start of her first, Ruby was just hoping to finish. Ozpin encouraged her to just get comfortable with the car and bring it home, no pressure. He intended to give her the time she needed to develop as a driver and there was no reason for Ruby to push too hard.

Still, it was a home race for the team so Ruby could not help but feel a responsibility to put up a good result. Then the pressure ramped up a whole lot more. A press conference was called by the track's owners on the Thursday before the race. Ozpin, Ruby and Yang were invited but not told why. Then the bombshell was dropped. The track was being renamed. It would no longer be the Beacon Circuit. Instead it would be named after the most successful and popular drivers to ever race for Beacon GP. It would now be the Circuit Rose and Xiao-Long. It was absolutely a PR play, naming the track after popular drivers while their children were racing there.

Yang was unhappy with the decision. She knew it was going to put undue pressure on both Ruby and herself. Yang could handle it, probably. Ruby had a lot to deal with already. She was not just a rookie, but abnormally young and inexperienced. She just needed to get used to racing in F1. Really, she needed to get used to racing in top-tier motorsports in general. Her life would be difficult enough without the distractions, and this one was going to be rough. It was. Ruby knew the questions that would be headed her way and left the press conference immediately. She did not need to go through the pain of her mother's death all over again. She had already had to do that in Menagerie. Now there were going to be signs and pictures and questions and comments. There was to be no escaping it.

Ruby stood at the entrance to the garage. Practice was just about to get started. She was just taking a step outside to get a feel for the weather - wind, temperature and even cloud cover made a huge difference in the car's handling - like she did whenever she was about to take the car out. But something caught her eye. There was a banner hanging up on the far side of the track near the start/finish line. Circuit Rose and Xiao-Long. It included stylized portraits of her parents. Her mother. Ruby's mind drifted, reminiscing about good times, happy times, then, the end of all that. Before she knew it tears were rolling down her face.

Ruby pulled her mind back to the present. She wiped the tears away with her sleeve and walked back into the garage to get in her car. "What's wrong?" Pyrrha asked.

"Huh?" Ruby said. "Oh, nothing."

"You were crying." Pyrrha persisted. "Talk to me. Please."

"I was just...thinking about my mother." Ruby sighed. "I'm sure you know the story. You don't need to worry about it."

Pyrrha walked up and wrapped Ruby in a tight hug. It was not quite Yang tight, but still a bit too tight for Ruby's liking. "It must be so hard." Pyrrha said. "Everywhere you go, you can't help but be reminded." She released Ruby.

"I'm used to it." Ruby said. "My whole career I've been Summer Rose's daughter. I only got to race in F3 because of my name and I'm pretty sure that's why Ozpin hired me. It's just something I'll have to get over."

"I'm sorry you have to go through that." Pyrrha said.

"You don't need to apologize, it's not your fault." Ruby said.

"For the record, I didn't hire you because of who your mother is." Ozpin said. "I hired you because of who you are and what I believe you can do."

"Sorry, I shouldn't have implied…" Ruby started.

"Don't worry about it." Ozpin said. "I know this weekend is going to be difficult for you. It's tough for me too, but what you face is on a different level. It's understandable that you'd be emotional."

"I guess." Ruby sighed. "I wish I could block it all out."

"Put on your helmet and get in the car." Pyrrha suggested. "Drive. You won't have time to think about it."

Ozpin looked at his watch. "Practice starts in a few minutes." Ozpin said. "Run as many laps as you want."

Through all three practices Ruby ran more laps than anyone else. In fact she ran more than any two other drivers combined. It was not just for the distraction. She really was dedicated to learning the car and the track and every moment spent driving was valuable. The Beacon Circuit - Ruby refused to refer to it as anything else - was a tricky one. It had a little bit of everything. There was an incredibly fast run from the final chicane, through a flat-out sweeper, all the way to an exceptionally tight hairpin. Then the track wound up and down through drastic elevation changes and a series of difficult corners. Then the character of the track changed again with a chicane, a quick stretch, two tight corners and two more chicanes to complete the lap.

Ruby's practice paid off. She was more competitive than she had been at Menagerie. She finished the three practices fifth, third and fifth. It helped that the track played to the car's strengths. Pyrrha led the first two practices but Yang took the third with Blake second. Winter and Weiss hovered around the top 5 but their cars were not as well suited to the track. Team Juniper was surprisingly quick and Nora only lost out to Pyrrha in the second practice by less than a tenth of a second. Still, practice could be deceptive. Qualifying would show who really had the speed to compete.

Ruby certainly had the speed. She was second to Pyrrha as time wound down in the qualifying session. The positions could, and would, change as the track gained rubber and speed, but she was well placed. A solid final run could see her start from the front row. Goodwitch GPE, after being very quick in practice, was curiously sluggish. They did not seem worried though. The Schnee-powered cars on the other hand seemed to genuinely lack the pace. As usual the race for pole would come down to the wire.

Ruby went out for one last run. She crawled through the final chicane, creating a gap to Pyrrha who was a little ahead, and then got a good run out onto the frontstretch. Ruby crossed the line to start her lap, then entered the flat-out left-hand sweeper called Tamborine. It was not really a challenge. Ruby just had to keep her foot down and the wheel steady. So long as the car had no problems it would easily fly through the turn at top speed. And so it did. The track briefly straightened out before a right-hand kink that led immediately into a left-hand hairpin. Ruby kept the car on the right side of the circuit as she cut through the kink before braking hard for the hairpin. After crawling through the tight corner Ruby hit the throttle and the car rocketed over a crest, the track gently curving right. Then it was hard on the brakes again for a tight, downhill left-hander.

Ruby got on the throttle, the car squirming as the track dove steeply downhill. She slid through a fast right-hand kink braking for the tight, uphill right-hander that immediately followed, called Water. Ruby accelerated uphill out of the turn. As the track crested a rise she braked hard for tight right-left-right chicane called High. She spun her tires on exit but regained control as the track dove back down, meandering left then right. As the gentle right-hand curve ended Ruby was on the brakes again. She slung her car through the pair of left-handers called Shore and got a good run out. After a quick straight came the track's tightest section. Ruby nailed her apexes as she negotiated the right-left and left-right chicanes collectively called Low. The back end of the car slid out as she accelerated back out onto the frontstretch to complete her lap.

It was not enough. Pyrrha was faster, fractionally, but still faster. More importantly, Goodwitch GPE had been holding back. On their final runs Yang and Blake took first and second, just ahead of the Beacon GP pair. Then came Nora, very close to Ruby, followed by Winter and Weiss a little bit slower. Ren, Coco and Penny completed the top 10. Judging by practice and qualifying pace, the top 5 all had a decent shot at the win though Yang and Blake were the favorites. Ruby's goal for the race - just finishing - had not changed, but she now hoped for a podium, a genuine possibility.

Race day was warm and sunny. After moving their cars to the grid, most of the drivers hung around, doing interviews or talking to engineers or each other. That was standard procedure. Ruby got out of her car and immediately returned to the garage. The press was barred from following her. She was not interested in their questions.

That was fine though. They were much more interested in her sister. She had won the previous race and was on pole. It was a very promising start to her sophomore season. People were really starting to take notice of her. It helped that she usually provided an entertaining interview. Having had to come up through the ranks on her own dime, she knew how to turn on the charm to lure fans and sponsors alike. This time was different though. She was abnormally quiet and introspective without any of the theatrics she would usually put on. Whether it was because of the track's renaming or because she was changing as a driver and a person, no one could say. Certainly no one could question her focus. Her pole winning lap had been perfect, a thing of beauty. She had always been a fast driver but somewhat prone to mistakes. If the season to date was any indication, she still had all the speed but had cleaned up her act.

Ruby returned to the grid just before the cars were to roll off for the parade lap. A mechanic hurriedly helped her strap in as another fired the engine. Then the grid was cleared and the cars rolled. They rounded the track before forming up on the grid once again for the start. The last row took their spots and the medical car stopped just behind them. At the back of the grid a marshall walked across the track, waving a flag to signify that the cars were lined up and ready to start. The drivers focused their attention on the lights suspended from the gantry hanging above the start/finish line. One-by-one the red lights lit up until all five were illuminated. The drivers revved their engines and the lights went out. Clutches were engaged and the cars lurched off the grid to the whine of turbos and the screech of tires.

It was a clean and even start with most of the cars arriving at the hairpin in the same order in which they had started. The exception was that both Schnee Automotive entries got past Nora. As the first lap went on Yang began to pull out a lead over Blake. Pyrrha remained right on Blake's gearbox with Ruby right on hers. Once at the twisting parts of the track, Winter and Weiss began to fall back from the lead four, their superior horsepower no help in the winding corners. Yang's lead stabilized at a little over a second. Blake was still hounded by Pyrrha and Ruby but passing was difficult and she managed to hold on. A little further back Nora and Ren were obviously quicker than the Schnee Automotive pair, but could not get past them.

Yang crossed the line to start the seventh lap. She turned left to start rounding Tambourine but suddenly her right-front tire exploded. At just under 200 mph the car went straight on, crossed a few meters of grass and slammed into the concrete wall, still doing about 180 mph. It skidded along, following the curvature of the barrier, the right side sheared off. As it lost speed it spun, finally coming to a stop pointing back at the track. The car immediately erupted in flames. Fire engulfed the cockpit and followed a trail of fuel back in the direction from which it had come. Safety crews were on the scene in seconds, dousing the flames with fire extinguishers.

Ruby saw everything. It was horrifying. Not only was it the fastest, hardest crash she had ever witnessed, but the fire. Fire was not the killer it had been in her parents' day, but it was still something every driver feared. She wanted to stop. She wanted to pull over and get out of the car. All weekend she had been surrounded by reminders of her mother, reminders of death, and now her sister was engulfed in flames. "Yang crashed." She said over the radio as she neared the hairpin.

"10-4." Her mechanic said.

"It was bad." She added after rounding the tight left-hander. "Fire."

"We know." The mechanic said. "We can see it on the monitors."

"You can retire the car if you want to." Ozpin came over the radio a few seconds later. "Your choice."

Ruby gave no reply. She kept going round the track. She would see how she felt. She would see what it looked like a lap later. When she returned to the scene the fire was out, apart from a few small patches of burning grass. To her relief Yang was out of the car. She was being helped away by a pair of safety workers but moving under her own power. It seemed a miracle. "I'll keep going." Ruby finally decided.

At the front of the field Blake and Pyrrha raced for the lead. Ruby began to fall back a bit, unable to match their pace. It stayed that way until the leaders made pit stops. Pyrrha pitted first. She hoped to gain an extra lap on fresh tires with clear track to hopefully leapfrog Blake. Blake and Ruby pitted the next lap. To her frustration, Pyrrha had gotten caught behind a slower car after leaving the pits and Blake was able to retain the lead. Ruby came out just behind Pyrrha. The change was behind them. The Schnee Automotive cars had been very hard on tires in the first race so they brought a harder compound this time around. The tires had less grip but better wear that put them in line with the rest of the field. Winter pit on the same lap as Pyrrha and Weiss the next lap with Blake and Ruby. Nora stayed out for three more laps. They were a fast three laps. Nora managed to jump ahead of both Winter and Weiss and began closing in on Ruby.

Winter's race ended early when her turbo failed. That promoted Weiss to fifth with Ren sixth. Ren had a faster car. Lap after lap he struggled to pass Weiss. The problem was Weiss was faster on the straights. He needed to be close on corner entry to pass but Weiss always pulled a gap. In the twisting sections where he had the advantage it was harder to pass and he could not make the move. Eventually he wore out his tires, and the matter was decided. Pyrrha eventually caught up to Blake, but Blake had just been saving her equipment. Once Pyrrha got close Blake increased her pace and stabilized the lead. Nothing Pyrrha could do closed the gap. She was tempted to turn up the turbo's boost pressure, but she knew it would only end up destroying the engine. Finishing second was better than not finishing at all.

In the closing stages Nora caught up to Ruby. Nora had a quicker car, at least at that point, and Ruby was fading. She had shredded her tires trying to keep up with the leaders and now her car was oversteering badly. Nora got in behind her and waited for the right moment. With three laps remaining Ruby came off the final chicane and spun her tires. She arrested the slide but it ruined her launch off the corner. She knew Nora would try to pass so she hugged the left-hand edge of the track as the cars raced towards Tambourine. Nora swept up alongside her on the right and the cars rounded the corner side-by-side. When it came time to brake for the hairpin, Nora was able to brake later and beat Ruby into the corner to take third. Nora pulled away to the finish.

Blake took her first career win ahead of Pyrrha and Nora, who had her first career podium. Ruby held onto fourth while Weiss and Ren rounded out the points. Coco, Penny, Arslan and Sun rounded out the top 10. Ruby had come up short of a podium but she had completed her goal by finishing the race. The points were a nice bonus. Happily Yang was alright. She had suffered some burns around her wrists but they were relatively minor. That was it, other than some nasty bruises. All things considered she had been very lucky. Ruby was just happy the weekend was over. It had been a trying one and she was looking forward to being anonymous again. The next race was in Mistral, Pyrrha's home race, and she would take the spotlight instead.

Standings After Two Races:

1st - Blake Belladonna - 12

1st - Pyrrha Nikos - 12

3rd - Yang Xiao-Long - 9

4th - Nora Valkyrie - 5

5th - Winter Schnee - 4

6th - Ruby Rose - 3

7th - Arslan Atlan - 2

8th - Weiss Schnee - 2

9th - Lie Ren - 1

Inspirations

- The Forever Fall Forest Circuit is based on Monza.

- Taiyang's crash is based on Derek Warwick's 1990 crash at Monza.

- The Beacon Circuit is based on Imola (Autodromo Enzo e Dino Ferrari).

- Yang's crash is based on Gerhard Berger's 1989 Imola crash.

Inaccuracies and Anachronisms

- Because I'm more familiar with it, I'm using the 1994 layout of Imola.

- Start procedure, and tire strategy are anachronistic as presented.