Biker Mice from Mars - Mountain Drift

Chapter 22: Speed Master

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" The announcer said with his bullhorn. "We have a new Speed Master~! Give it up for Manuel Vernandez~!" The crowd went wild with applause. Manuel had taken first place! Best of all, the race had been broadcast all over the internet and on cable networks! Vinnie, Modo, Stoker, Carbine, and Rimfire saw everything from the laptop from inside the semi and were going wild!

"He did it!" Vinnie yelled. "He actually did it!"

Carbine felt relieved when she heard that Manuel had won. (Don't worry, Throttle. Manuel won.) She said to him via telepathy. (We'll have you free soon.)

(I know, babe.) Throttle responded. (Cataclysm isn't happy, but he will keep his word this time...)

"I can't believe it!" Takumi said, getting into the semi with Itsuki and Iketani. "My pen pal is now the new international Speed Master!"

"Yeah!" Itsuki cheered, jumping up and down. "Way to go Manuel!"

"This is awesome!" Iketani exclaimed. "We can now say we've actually been part of history!"

Bunta was just as stunned. He had helped build and sponsor a car that propelled a new Speed Master into a whole new league of racing!

But no one was as shocked, or furious, as Kaido.

"This is blasphemous! Crazy! You! You..." He pointed at Bunta, walking up to him.

Bunta just looked at Kaido with a smile, lighting up a cigarette. "Problem?"

Kaido just stood there, heaving in breath after breath. "You... You knew it! You knew somehow, he would win, somehow you knew it! Well, pat yourself on the back while you can! You just got lucky!"

"You want to know how I knew he would win?" Bunta said. He then got up to Kaido's face. "It's because he didn't cheat." He then blew a cloud of smoke in Kaido's face, causing him to cough. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have business to take care of..." He then motioned to the semi, which started up.

"But... What am I supposed to do?!" Kaido said. "I have sponsors waiting for me to tell them that my son is victorious! How will I explain this to them?!"

"Don't worry," Bunta said, getting into the semi behind Charley with a look that clearly expressed his joy at the situation. "I'm sure you'll think of something. My advice, however, is get out of the racing business so you don't worry about those so-called sponsors. Oh, and speaking of sponsors, tell Limburger that he'd better keep his end of the deal. After all, we got him on tape."

With that, he shut the door.

"So, what's the situation?" Bunta asked. "Receive any messages about Throttle?"

"Yes," Carbine said. "They say that Throttle is being taken to the finish line. We're going to meet Limburger there."

A couple of hours later, at the finish line...

The race was over, and the crowds had already dispersed. Manuel waited at the finish line, leaning against his car as two Semis approached. It was Yuya's car transport and Jaiden's semi. They stopped right near him.

Manuel sighed. He figured Yuya's scheme would be involved with Limburger somehow. Carbine got out with Rimfire, Vinnie, and Modo, as they were ready to put up a fight for Throttle if they didn't follow through. The rest of the group got out and watched in anticipation.

A door was opened, and Throttle was then shoved out and onto the ground.

"There! You've got him back!" Yuya snapped. "I hope you're happy Manuel! You've ruined a legacy tonight!"

Manuel was silent, a stern look on his face, not even moving an inch from his car. Modo and Vinnie helped Throttle up, slinging his arms around their shoulders, Carbine giving him a new pair of field-spec sunglasses. They then started to walk over to Manuel.

"Do you have anything to say?!" Yuya snapped.

"Only this:" Manuel said with a leer. "Hit the Road."

Yuya then felt afraid. If this guy drove like he had nothing to lose, then he sure as hell didn't want to see how he fought! Yuya closed the door and barked for the driver to leave in Japanese. His transport then drove away.

As soon as he was out of sight, the sun began to rise. Carbine then did something unexpected. She hugged Throttle and cried.

"Hey, don't worry, I'm alright." Throttle said, patting Carbine on the back, calming her.

"No thanks to me..." Manuel said, walking up. "I shouldn't have left you alone."

"You had a lot going on at once. Besides, none of us knew that Limburger was still around." Stoker said, looking at Manuel. "You can't predict the future, kid. You can only make the best of it. Which is exactly what you did. Just think of the title you now have! Manuel Vernandez, Speed Master! Who would've thought?"

"Stoker has a good point, kid." Throttle said. "You've made everyone proud, and I'm sure that your big bro is looking down at you from the stars, saying 'nice work.' "

"I couldn't have done it without you guys..." Manuel said with a smile. He looked down the road as the dawn started to illuminate the landscape. Then, he saw something down the road! He looked and saw a man in sunglasses with blonde hair! Next to a Mustang! It was Hector, looking straight at him, giving him a thumbs-up of approval! Manuel couldn't believe his eyes!

"Hey, you alright?" Takumi asked.

Manuel turned to Takumi. Then back to the road. Hector was gone.

"...Yeah, I'm fine." Manuel said, smiling. "Just fine."

THE END