BAB2 -Chapter 40

# Chapter 40: Aero Cup 2

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Just moments before Xay exited the tunnel, everyone back at the Quantium Rooftop was in high spirits.

Amy, Valiant, and the twins splashed around playfully in the pool, their laughter echoing off the glass walls.

Remington tore into a rack of ribs nearly the size of his head, while Lexi kept bickering with Aunt Gwen and her mom’s hologram.

Off to the side, Tyra and Willow mimicked each other in a rapid-fire game of shapeshifting, their forms changing in perfect sync.

Kimi set the local holo screen to Stacy Vega’s stream, while the massive matrix of overhead displays remained under the event’s direct control.

Stacy was reporting live from the media corner on the field. True to her word, she had swapped her cat ears and long tail for a pair of round bear ears and a nubby tail.

She covered the basics and highlighted a few of the Awakened fan favorites racing that day, but it was one line in particular that got a cheer from everyone on the rooftop:

*“—and manually piloting an A1-X Comet for Solaris is channel favorite, Xavyer X—”*

They all gathered together to count down before he took off—just as excited as if he were actually racing.

When Xay launched, the twins clapped, and Lexi snickered at the sight of Dragon blocking the Solaris logo on his back.

Aunt Gwen tsked. “Quantium would’ve let the logo shine through little Dragon’s suit.”

“Has she gotten denser?” Talulah’s hologram asked.

“He looks so cool,” Amy cheered, holding Valiant in her arms.

“I’m surprised they got him to wear a helmet,” Lexi said.

“I’m surprised it’s not a hoodie,” Kimi added, making everyone laugh.

Meanwhile, at Cosmos Academy, students had gathered on the observation deck of one of the several spiraling structures surrounding the central hub.

They were holding their own watch party, sponsored by the GastroHub with food, drink, music, and games.

“The bro really is a superstar, huh?” Peanut asked, grinning.

Bev chuckled. “We already knew that.”

“He shines brightly, but he never tries to blind his friends,” Juniper said cryptically, prompting everyone to glance at her.

“What?” she asked slowly. “Do I have something on my face?”

Winnie patted Juniper on the back, her mouth too full to speak.

“I agree with you, Juniper,” Ezra laughed. “He is bright. But also.. certainly magnetic.”

Bev smirked. “Is that what we’re calling it? Magnetism?” she teased, leaning in and waggling her eyebrows.

Ezra cleared her throat, her cheeks flushing pink. “Anyway, who do you think will win the first race?”

“Obviously Jetson Geto,” Peanut declared unilaterally.

“And why is that obvious?” Ezra asked curiously.

Bev sighed. “Now you’ve done it.”

A wide grin spread across Peanut’s face. “I’m glad you asked, Lady Ezra. You see—”

Across the room, on the lower level of the tiered seating, Gideon Hightower spoke boldly to his new sidekick.

“Losing to the groupie? All part of the plan, Xander. Every hero needs his comeback story. The lower you fall, the greater the rise.”

Xander nodded, having heard this before.

“Him being up there on the screen, part of the event—that should’ve been me,” Gideon said, sucking his teeth. “But when I take it all back, Xander.. it’s going to be that much sweeter.”

Across town, in the Residential District, the Blake household was also tuned in.

“Why didn’t you tell me my son-in-law would be racing today?” Theo, Rox’s dad, demanded loudly.

Rox choked on her lemonade. “Your what?!”

“You heard me,” he said, setting down a bowl of spicy cheese dip and hurrying over to her.

“This is so exciting! We’ve got to buy his team merch! Can he get us tickets to the season races?”

Theo’s face suddenly lit up with inspiration. “Can he get us into the Pit Terminal?! It’s okay if it’s just me.”

“Settle down, dear,” Belladonna, Rox’s mom, called from her recliner. “Don’t overexcite your heart.”

“My heart jumps with joy!” Theo declared dramatically, dropping to one knee and placing his hand over his chest.

Rox held up a hand. “First, he isn’t your son-in-law. Second—”

“Well, lock it down,” Theo scoffed, cutting her off as he stood. “You’re not getting any younger and your mom and I want grandkids—and season tickets.”

Rox was too stunned to respond, and across from them, Belladonna just chuckled.

At the Vermilion Estate, in the garden house, several women of the family had gathered to watch as well.

Their husbands and younger family members were in VIP suites at the stadium itself.

“The kid’s everywhere,” Leah laughed, sipping from a golden flask. “Their rift incident was the talk of the town—or at least a few big sects.”

Miriam nodded beside her. “I had someone look into that. Far too many inconsistencies and convenient excuses for it to be an accident. But the cleanup was professional—lots of resources.”

“Like Big 5 resources?” Rebekah asked, fanning herself. “What are we going to do? I’m told Kimiko was a part of that whole mess. And we can’t let anyone move on a Vermilion.”

“We—aren’t going to do anything,” Leah said, setting her flask down. “Let them come. It’ll only sharpen the kid’s blades.”

Miriam nodded. “But we will keep watch. If they go too far, the Big 5 can become the Big 4.”

“Speaking of sharpening blades,” Vivienne cut in, setting her tea cup down. “Kimiko has submitted a request on Xavyer’s behalf to the family blacksmith—in regard to his reward after clearing the full trial.”

Ayaka tilted her head in confusion. “I thought his Bloodline wouldn’t allow him to touch any other weapons?”

Vivienne nodded. “As far as I’m aware, it won’t. But Kimiko has something unconventional in mind.”

Leah chuckled. “You’re in luck. I’ve recently come across a very peculiar ore in the Wilds,” she said, turning to Miriam. “I’d be willing to donate—if your husband makes something truly entertaining for the kid.”

“I’ll tell him to start immediately,” Miriam said. “He’s been looking for a good challenge.”

Leah took another swig from her flask, snickering under her breath: “Don’t disappoint me, kid.”

In the city center, on the top floor of the Morwen Building, Anton raged at the very mention of Xay’s name.

“SHUT IT OFF!” he roared, hurling a desk across the room. “Once the city’s mine, there’ll be no place left for you to crawl!”

His staff scrambled to please him, switching the streams and repairing the wall as quickly as possible.

Across town, in one of the Helix Tower apartments, Vi had invited the S4 over for their own private watch party.

They could’ve joined her uncle in the presidential suite at Helix Stadium, he owned it after all.

But he convinced them to stay home and enjoy the privacy and comfort.

“The number one hottie just keeps getting hotter,” Reina sang as she bounced around the lounge, subtly pocketing anything that looked expensive.

Vi played the perfect hostess, issuing orders to the servants with a sultry grin—even directing them to replace the items that seemed to mysteriously vanish.

“Dante, love, I’ve got party snacks on the way for you and Jasper,” she called out. “Remember to wash up before you come back in.”

Out on the balcony, Dante and Jasper smoked cigars, eager for the real races to begin.

“I’ve got half a million on Jetson Geto losing the first race,” Dante said, grinning. “The odds were too good to pass up.”

Jasper said nothing, just nodding along.

At that moment, Vi received an encrypted message from back in her home kingdom.

**Royal Seeker**: Identity status?

Glancing at Xay on the screen once more, Vi replied.

**Viatrix**: Confirmed.

Even Joan Thaxton had the day off, watching from a rooftop sports bar with a few of her A.S.I.U. buddies.

“Aye Cap, isn’t that the hotshot from the lab incident?” Braxton asked, pointing at the screen.

“Yeah,” she grunted. “His name came up again during that nearly-botched rift closure recently.”

Braxton shrugged and took a swig of his beer. “You blaming him for fixing problems, Cap?”

“Of course not,” she said flatly. “It just seems strange—wherever he shows up, trouble’s not far behind.”

Braxton chuckled. “Sounds like you need more time off, Cap. You’re grasping at straws.”

“Maybe..” she mused, downing the rest of her beer.

“Another round!” Braxton shouted.

Bethany watched the opening ceremony alone in her small apartment.

She smirked to herself when Xay’s name was mentioned.

*You’ll never know*, she thought.

None of them at the stadium would ever realize how close they had come to disaster. She’d saved them all by tipping off Alan about what Reeve’s crew had planned.

He’d been thrilled—kept going on about what a great job she’d done.

For a moment, she felt like a heroine straight out of one of those thriller novels. Bethany giggled to herself as she munched on her popcorn.

*Maybe this spy stuff isn’t so hard after all.*

***

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As Xay and the other brand pilots completed the Exhibition Lap around the city’s perimeter, the final leg brought them soaring in formation above the skyline.

Each hovercraft cast long shadows over packed rooftops and overflowing skywalks. Xay had waved at kids who reminded him of himself.

Helix Stadium blazed ahead, brilliant with spotlights and fanfare. Its twin spirals flared with golden light, transitioning from highlight reels into a synchronized visual sequence.

The Aero Cup Opening Ceremony had begun in earnest.

The curved glass dome above the central field slid open and high above, a massive, burning Aero Cup crest braided around the number “54” flared to life midair.

It blazed larger than life, swirling around a ring of expanding lights that slowly rained downward.

As the pacer entered through the top, multiple stages of coordinated lights erupted around the crest, streaking blue, purple, silver, and gold across the sky.

Confetti cannons followed a beat later, blanketing the air with multicolored foil that glinted in the dazzling lights.

Booming music surged—a fusion of orchestral grandeur and electronic bass that echoed across the entire city. The beat dropped just as Xay swept into the stadium.

It felt like flying straight into an eruption of light and sound. Crowds roared from every level, from the ground seating to the rotating lattice towers.

At the center of the field, a sprawling, tiered stage rose like a floating ziggurat.

Once the pilots reached the end of their lap, the pacer veered off, and the brand hovercraft slowed down the glowing lane where ground crews waved them toward a wide staging bay just off the course.

Xay guided the A1-X down gently, still riding the high of the crowd’s roar. A team of stewards motioned him toward a waiting lift platform beside the main stage.

One by one, the brand pilots stepped from their craft, guided by indicator lights and polite ushers in glowing trim.

They were led up a curved ramp to the bottom tier of the floating stage.

Its surface rippled, lighting up with every step and displaying their names and brand logos in shimmering calligraphy at their designated places.

Above them stood several announcers and the master of ceremonies, all dressed in gold suits emblazoned with the Aero Cup crest.

The tier above that was already filled with the proud pilots scheduled to race in the event. They waved and cheered right along with everyone else.

The master of ceremonies raised his arms wide, his voice booming through the stadium with energetic reverence:

“Ladies, gentlemen, friends, family, kids of all ages—welcome to the fifty-fourth annual New Meridian Aero Cup!”

The crowd’s reaction was immediate and deafening. The master of ceremonies continued with introductions for himself and the other announcers.

Once he began naming the racers, the lights above changed—blanketing the sky with coordinated team colors and logos as more confetti released.

The entire stage spun slowly, ascending so that every angle of the stadium could see them clearly.

After giving a shoutout to the mayor and other VIPs in the box suites, the master of ceremonies turned his attention to the highest tier of the stage.

“And there it is!” he exclaimed. “The dream of every pilot to ever touch the sky! The Aero Cup Crown Trophy. This isn’t just a trophy, folks, it’s history, legacy, and glory all wrapped into one shining symbol!”

The Aero Cup Trophy stood dazzling in all its glory.

It shone like a fragment of a star—composed of sparkling gem prisms fused together with glowing gold trim and a spiraling maglev golden core.

The crowd only thundered louder as the lights shifted and a final wave of flares rippled in sequence around the lower bowl.

The racers prepared to make their way toward their hovercraft.

Xay remained still on the stage, his smile wide and his heart pounding. The entire city was cheering all around him.

It was a beautiful moment.

And that was when the grapholithium bomb detonated.

Taken by surprise, both Xay and Dragon were violently thrown forward by a deafening boom and a searing flash of purple.

Xay’s bones rattled, his ears rang, and his vision swam as he fought to catch himself in midair.

His aura flared, and he managed to tumble to a stop without falling to the ground.

Regaining his orientation, he shook his head, struggling to make sense of what had just happened.

“What the fuck,” he muttered, though he couldn’t hear his own voice.

Thanks to their stats, he and Dragon were shaken but mostly unharmed.

The same couldn’t be said for everyone else on the stage. Most of them hadn’t been Awakened.

A spreading purple inferno engulfed multiple tiers of the nearly destroyed stage. It still hovered—barely—but it was clear it wouldn’t for much longer.

Those who survived the initial blast and hadn’t been thrown off were screaming as they leapt for the ground, their suits on fire.

Victor had already jumped from the far side, activating his *Ward* mid-air and rolling to extinguish the flames licking at him.

The pilot who’d been standing right next to Xay must’ve been carrying the bomb—there was nothing left of him and purple fire still billowed from the spot where he’d stood.

Not having the time to properly process everything, Xay moved to save as many people as possible.

He rushed back through the air with Dragon at his side, using *Psychokinesis* to grab all the falling people and help them down safely.

Xay guided the entire stage away from the media on the ground, sitting it down in the center of the field.

Dragon swooped over the blaze, devouring the purple flame as her aura shifted violet.

Xay teleported those in critical condition to the closest medical personnel on the edges of the field.

Within minutes, Dragon had already finished consuming the fires and there was no one else on the stage for Xay to help.

Things could’ve been far worse if they hadn’t been at ground zero. But they were still too late for far too many.

As Xay stood in the air looking around at the stadium, all he could see was chaos, confusion, and panic.

Mana barriers had flared into place across the stands. Alarms blared, and the entire stadium ran for the exits in a frenzied stampede.

All the cheer, joy, laughter, and celebration had instantly vanished—replaced by screams of terror and people trampling one another.

Security forces and Awakened personnel across the stadium moved fast to stabilize the situation, secure the VIPs, and tend to the wounded.

The entire city was placed on lockdown as authorities swept the streets.

No additional explosives detonated that day.

But the damage had already been done.

And all of New Meridian had watched it live.

***

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**To be continued in Bond Arsenal 3.**