Nano Contestant - Episode 1: Whatever It Takes (7 page)

“I’m still making a few last adjustments. I’ll flip them on when you pass the one mile marker.” Skylar had configured Matthew’s last two plugins. She was madly typing on one terminal and then swiping it over to the next terminal to be checked, while she worked on the next one. Finally they were ready. She transmitted them over to Roland’s system. “They are ready.”

Roland could feel he was getting winded. His speed was down to
12 mph
. “Great. I’m about to hit the one mile mark.”

Skylar watched Roland’s video feed on the big data room wall. As soon as his distance hit the one mile mark, she hit the command to execute on her terminal. “Ok, they are both on now.”

Roland continued his pace. “I don’t feel any different. What do they do?”

“The first one is an oxygen enhancer. It will compress the air in your lungs as you breathe it in, allowing you to breathe in at least double the amount of air you normally do. This will get you more oxygen per breath. So, take a deep breath, and it probably will feel different.”

Roland took a deep breath, but instead of having to stop when he hit his full lung capacity, he kept inhaling. “Whoa, that was weird. But I like it!” His exhalation also took longer. After a few breaths he could tell that his head was clearer and some of the fatigue had left his arms and legs. “Speeding up.” Roland’s HUD jumped back up to
14 mph
.
 

“The second one increases the contraction speed of your fast twitch muscle fibers. So, basically that means the faster that you go, the faster you
can
go. Lengthen your stride. See if you can hit
16 mph
.”

Roland began minimizing his side of the conversation to save air. “Lengthening stride.” Roland stretched each step as far as he could go. He also changed his position to being less of a jog and more of a sprint. He began hitting the pavement with the balls of his feet. His HUD speed read
16 mph
. “Hit 16!”

Skylar watched as his stride ate up the road. “Good. You just hit the two mile mark. You’ve only got one mile left. Give it all you’ve got!”

Sweat ran in rivulets down Roland’s face. “17!” He came up on a slight downward slope and pushed to take advantage of it. “18, 19!” Then he found his new running rhythm. He was taking eight steps for each breath. His head still felt clear, so he kept pushing his speed. “20, 21, 22.”

“You’ve only got a quarter mile to go, Roland. Keep it up!”

Roland could tell he was topping out on his speed as tunnel vision began to set in. “24.” He took in one more deep breath and then exhaled as he neared the end of his three miles. “26!”

Skylar smiled. “That’s it! That’s three miles.”

Roland went to a slow jog. He was breathing too hard to answer back. He turned around and headed for home. “Time?” “What’s my time?”

Skylar looked over at the timer. “Whoa, Roland, you aren’t going to believe this.”
 

“What was it? Did I make fifteen minutes?”

“No, you didn’t.”

“But, I…”

“12:42.”

“Wait? What?”

“Roland, you just ran three miles in twelve minutes and forty-two seconds!”

Roland smiled. He could feel goosebumps on his arms. “Twelve minutes. That means I was doing four minute miles!”

“That’s right. Well, four minutes and change.”

“Yes, and change. I’ve only ever barely broken six minute miles for this distance in the Marines. I think it was 5:50 or something. This is huge!”

Skylar finished the last of her espresso. “Roland, you are in a good place for the games. With today’s time and some hard training, you could be competitive.”

“Thanks, Sky. Great work on the plugins by the way.”

“You’re welcome. I think we can do a lot more down the road.”

“Hey Sky, I’m starved. Will you order me two meat lover’s pizzas? And whatever veggie thing you want for lunch?”

Skylar laughed. “Yeah, I will.” She pulled up the pizza place’s website and started putting in the order. “After you eat lunch, we need to go down to Pinnacle's headquarters to do the in-person registration.

“Into the lair of the enemy…”

“Yep.”

C
HAPTER
T
HIRTEEN
:

C
HOKE

SKYLAR AND ROLAND arrived at Pinnacle's headquarters. They followed the signs for the contestant registration and got to the end of a very long line. There had to be three hundred people in front of them. Most were groups of five or ten and wore matching team colors.

Skylar eyed all of the different people. The contestants were the easiest to pick out, because they were the fittest looking of each group. She leaned close to Roland and spoke in a low voice. “Look at that one in red. He’s a digital for sure.”

Roland followed her gaze to a man who looked to be in incredible shape and very handsome. “Why, because he looks photoshopped?”

Skylar nodded slightly. “Yeah, the digitals have their DNA designed so they are perfectly symmetrical and have all the most handsome or beautiful features, which they can change by using one of their digital DNA apps.”

Roland watched as a passing girl made eyes at the digital. “Well, seems to be working for him here. We’ll see how ‘handsome’ is at winning races.”

Skylar folded her arms. “Right?” Then she looked down the long line in front of her. “I hope this line starts moving faster.”

Roland turned to watch the people arriving on the right side of the room. He motioned with his eyes to a woman. “Sky, look at that hybrid. Both of her legs are droid tech.”

Skylar turned to look in Roland’s direction. “Whoa! Usually people cover up their robotic implants out in public.”

Their line moved and Roland was able to take a step forward. “Yeah, but I bet here it’s like a status symbol or something.”

Skylar kept watching the woman. The hybrid’s legs gleamed a metallic silver. “Bet you’re right. I also bet she’s fast.”

Roland pulled a bottle of water from his backpack and offered one to Skylar. “Seems like I was reading that hybrids cannot be more than sixty percent droid tech or something like that. They have to have a certain amount of human tissue left.”

Skylar sipped her water. “Yeah, that’s right. Ol’ silver legs over there has got to be at least forty percent droid, if not more.”

Roland chugged his whole water bottle. “That’s a lot. I wonder what happened to her, that she lost both legs?”

Skylar turned back towards Roland. “If they can find a corporate sponsor, many of them will have their limbs replaced.”

Roland raised an eyebrow. “So they get perfectly good arms and legs removed, and then the company installs their tech in place of it?”

Skylar put the cap back on her water. “Yep, that’s right.”

“So what happens to their good limbs? Do they donate them or something?”

“That or sell them. I’ve read about people with low budgets that want to get into the Tech Games who sell their arms or legs to offset the costs of getting the new hardware.”

Roland shook his head. “That’s hard to wrap my head around.”

A small team of six dressed in light blue lined up behind Skylar and Roland. The contestant for the light blue team was standing at the front of his group. He had no robotic implants and his chiseled features and muscular build suggested he was a digital.

The light blue contestant half smiled. “A hundred million dollar prize will make people do crazy things.” The contestant shook Roland’s hand. “I’m Enrique. This line looks stupid long, so I must be in the right place.”

Roland gave an upwards nod. “Hey, I’m Roland. We haven’t moved since we got here.”

Enrique crossed his arms. “You competed before?”

“Nope,” Roland said. “This is my first time. How about you?”

Enrique held up two fingers. “Twice. Last year and the year before.”

Roland gave a slight nod. “How did you do?”

“I was number 26 two years ago.”

Skylar snapped her fingers. “I remember you. You made it to the semi-finals last year.”

Enrique turned towards her. “Yep. That’s right. I made it to number 9. Are you his NAV?”

Skylar nodded. “Yeah, I’m his navigator and tech support.”

Enrique turned back to Roland. “Where’s your coach?”

Roland’s brow furrowed. “Coach? I don’t have one.”

Enrique pointed his thumb behind him. “I got three and a NAV and a tech on my team. My advice, get a coach. You are going to need one.” Enrique then turned his attention to some paperwork that another team member handed him.

Roland turned to Skylar and lowered his voice. “A coach? Oh well, we aren’t here to win.” He shrugged his shoulders. “We just need to be in long enough to get the information we need.”

Skylar nodded. “I agree, but a coach might be able to get you the time you need.”

Roland sighed.

Skylar pointed up towards the front. “Hey look, a bunch more Pinnacle employees are coming to help with registrations. That’s good news. Hopefully, we’ll start moving.”

Roland watched as twenty more employees started calling up the next teams. “Great, c’mon people. Let’s go.”

Skylar’s eyes got big. “Roland, look at the team coming in the main entry in the black uniforms!”

Roland turned towards the back. “Wow, they must have at least thirty people. Do you think that’s all for one contestant?”

Skylar motioned to one man that stood head and shoulders above the rest of the team in the black uniforms. “Yeah, I bet they are all here for him.”

Roland watched the big man. “He’s huge. What team is that?”

Skylar recognized their logo as they got closer. “Allied Robotics. That’s Pinnacle's biggest competitor.”

“And they got twenty-nine people to support their one contestant?”

Skylar took another sip of her water. “I’m sure they want to show up Pinnacle at their own game.”

Roland watched the huge group line up behind the light blue team. “I like them already.”
 

The big man was wearing black athletic shorts and a sleeveless shirt. Both of his arms and his legs were a light blue metallic color. His muscular head sported a two inch mohawk.

Roland whispered to Skylar. “He’s got droid arms and legs!”

Skylar turned her head slightly to see. “He’s got to be pushing that sixty percent limit.”

Roland nodded and watched as the big man pushed his own people out of the way to get to the front of his group. “Looks like a
real
nice guy.”

Then the big man tapped Enrique on the shoulder. “Hey, the little squealer came back this year. I missed having you as a punching bag.”

Enrique turned around. “Duke, what an unpleasant surprise.”

Duke shifted his massive bulk and grinned hideously at Enrique. “You look more pathetic than last year. Shouldn’t you have at least tried to train? You have taken all the fun out of crushing you again.”

People in the line were turning around to watch the outburst from Duke.

Enrique crossed his arms and stood his ground. “All those upgrades, and you are still so ugly. You’d think your team could have fixed your face by now. Maybe they could give you a conscious, too, so you wouldn’t cheat anymore.”

Duke put a beefy metallic blue finger on Enrique’s shoulder and gave it a shove. “Cheating? I do whatever it takes to win! You wouldn’t understand, because your DNA is programmed for losing!” Duke laughed obnoxiously at his own joke.

A member of Duke’s team, also dressed in black, ran from the back of the group and grabbed Duke’s arm. “Duke! Stop! This isn’t the place. Save it for the Games.”

Duke flipped his wrist and the man stumbled backwards. “Back off, Coach! Duke turned his attention back to Enrique and shook his fist in front of his face. “How about a little preview of what this season is going to be like?”

Pinnacle's security started heading towards the two contestants.

Enrique smiled. “Please take a swing at me. It would be worth it to get you disqualified right now before the games even begin!”

The coach tried again. “Duke, don’t do anything to get disqualified. C’mon. Just walk away.”

Duke turned towards the coach. “I’m getting real tired of your constant nagging, Coach.”

“I’m here to help you. Now, just chill out,” said the coach.

Duke reached out and grabbed his coach by the neck with one hand and lifted him off the ground. “I don’t want your help. You’re fired.” Duke began to squeeze his hand together. The coach’s face began turning red as he struggled against Duke’s iron grip.

Roland ran over to help the coach being strangled. “Hey! Let him go!”

Duke dropped his coach and turned to Roland. “Who are you, little leprechaun?”

Roland helped the coach up. “Back off! Go simmer down.”

Duke took a step towards Roland and then talked loud enough for everyone around to hear. “Anyone lose an insignificant support staffer? Looks like your bag boy got loose. Come get him before I teach him some manners.”

The security team arrived and helped the coach off to the side and a medic began to check him over.

Roland stood up straight. “I’m here to compete.”

Duke laughed loudly. “In what? Can’t be the Tech Games. You got no metal, so you can’t be a hybrid and you’re too plain to be a digital. Just what are you competing in?”

Skylar stood there silently fuming.
Roland, don’t draw any more attention to yourself,
she thought.

Roland didn’t even flinch. “I’m a Tech Games competitor. I’m not a hybrid or a digital.” Roland turned around and walked back to his place in line.

Duke raised both of his arms to address the crowd. “Hear that everyone? This little guy isn’t a hybrid or a digital. He’s got his own home brewed tech, and he thinks he can compete!” Duke gave a loud boisterous laugh. “Watch him, everyone. He won’t even make it off the starting line!”

Skylar leaned in close once Roland got back in line. “Forget him. He doesn’t matter.”

Roland ran his hands through his hair. “It’s almost our turn to register. I just want to get out of here.”

The coach made his way over to Roland and put out his hand. “I’m Lincoln. I wanted to say ‘thanks’ for coming over when you did.”