During the Race -- The Mouth of the Emperor
With incredible speed after death-defying acceleration, Velocipede Excelsior and Ani-Quin make it to the Al-Miraiya planetoid. Ani-Quin tells Velocipede where the Mouth of the Emperor is, but it is visible from space, not hard to miss. The checkpoint, located within the mouth, is not hard to find, but in the maze of the canyon's crevices and with sharp edges and lightning all around it's not an easy feat to make it through in one piece.
"Right! Left! Other left!" Ani-Quin shouts. "There's a diamond spike up ahead! The wall over there is thin, we can break through it! That path is more filled with lightning, do the other one! Not that one, that's where the altars are!"
They zipped through flashes of white and red and green and blue and pink and soared for split seconds through pitch black darkness of a cavern tunnel so deep down one might wonder if that was the Throat of the Emperor, before bursting out again. The flags and lights that marked the checkpoint were up ahead and they flew through, then out of the Mouth again, back to safety... for what measure of safety one could say they had at the speeds they went, with less maneuverability, punctuated by hitting the lip of the Mouth as they came out.
Smoke trailed the Oily Thunder as the finish line came into view and the butt of Alud Soom's ship just ahead of them.
"Step on it! STEP ON IT!" Ani-Quin shouted in urgent excitement. They would be disqualified, but Velocipede could still pull ahead! Foot by foot by imperial foot they gained on the Veehran prince, the nose of their ship coming into view from the sides of his cockpit.
Then they blew through the finish. One much less graceful than the other, as the ship came down and left a deep furrow in the ground.
The ship was dead.
They were not.
Ani-Quin laughed loudly as the flames rose up around them and the two of them hurriedly open the cockpit to get out. As they stand outside the wreckage, the loud voice of the announcer came over the speakers in the distance, calling out racers passing through. Ani-Quin slapped Velocipede Excelsior on the shoulder. "Welcome to the Mekhala Mad Dash!"
After the Race -- The Ceremony
"Thank one, thank all for coming to the Mekhala Mad Dash of 2037!" The announcer called out. "The winners are up on the scoreboard! We would like to make everyone aware that in the Mekhala Mad Dash, the most important thing is participating, the second most important thing is winning, and the third most important thing is surviving! We shall prepare the stage for our champions. In the meantime, we'll have a moment of silence for those who were lost to us..."
On the giant screen behind the announcer, and all the smaller screens throughout the venue, a list of names came scrolling by, with short clips showing their unfortunate demise.
[...]
"And with that moment over, let's go to our champions!"
The scroll still kept going, but now there were larger names imposed over it in a clearer colour and font.
"In third place, Nsott'Blihg the Glix!" A montage showed some highlights from Nsott's participation in the race, pulling in their sails for the space-kelp maze, braking just in time and just enough for the blue shields in Glic space to not obliterate him, chanting the Jy'mar mantras against claustrophobia before entering the Ring of Blood, and finally their photo finish against a Khylokian raider.
"In second place, Lewis!" A montage showed their failed attempt to break through the space-kelp maze by force, having a drink, fighting off raiders, taking a nap, and zipping through the glittering canyons of the Mouth of the Emperor.
"And in first place, our champion of the Mekhala Mad Dash of 2037, coming all the way from Veehra to show her ride and her Mad skills, it is VALUUUUUUSSS VIIIIIILE!"
Music sounded, lights flashed, flags waved and Valus Vile was invited to come onto the stage to accept the champion's belt.
The Mekhala Mad Dash Champion's Belt
