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canon:ace14:horizon:chapter6 [16/03/2026 17:43] – poistettu - ulkoinen muokkaus (Unknown date) 127.0.0.1canon:ace14:horizon:chapter6 [16/03/2026 17:43] (current) – ↷ Page name changed from canon:ace14:horizon:horizon_ch6 to canon:ace14:horizon:chapter6 kkurzex
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 +HORIZON PROTOCOL\\ Chapter 6 — Furnace Line
 +
 +By the time the third event was announced, the desert had fully awakened.
 +
 +Sunlight hammered the valley now, turning the festival grounds into a shimmering sea of metal, glass, and color. Mechanics rushed between cars. Vendors shouted. Drone cameras dipped low over the paddock searching for dramatic close-ups of drivers preparing for the next run.
 +
 +Horizon never paused for long.
 +
 +Not when the crowd wanted speed.
 +
 +----
 +
 +Ace tightened the harness inside the Nismo and flexed her fingers once against the steering wheel.
 +
 +The car felt good.
 +
 +Better than good.
 +
 +The engine had that slightly aggressive vibration she liked — the mechanical equivalent of a blade that had just been sharpened.
 +
 +Mai leaned against the DB11 nearby while reviewing the course layout.
 +
 +“This one is shorter,” she said calmly.
 +
 +“But more technical.”
 +
 +Ace glanced over.
 +
 +The route map looked ugly.
 +
 +Sharp elevation changes.\\ Several blind turns.\\ One section marked simply **FURNACE PASS**.
 +
 +“…that name doesn’t sound friendly.”
 +
 +Mai shrugged lightly.
 +
 +“Horizon rarely chooses names for safety.”
 +
 +----
 +
 +Shammy stood several meters away again, studying the wind patterns rolling through the valley.
 +
 +Dust moved differently today.
 +
 +Not random.
 +
 +Not natural.
 +
 +“…the probability distortion increased after the second race,” she said quietly.
 +
 +Ace raised an eyebrow.
 +
 +“So the festival’s warming up.”
 +
 +Mai considered that phrasing.
 +
 +“…yes.”
 +
 +----
 +
 +Across the paddock Grouse was doing exactly what Grouse always did.
 +
 +Showing off.
 +
 +He revved his engine loudly for the cameras, laughing with the crowd while several other drivers gathered around his car.
 +
 +One of them shook his head.
 +
 +“You almost wiped out half the grid in that canyon.”
 +
 +Grouse grinned.
 +
 +“But I didn’t.”
 +
 +“That’s the point.”
 +
 +----
 +
 +The Horizon announcer’s voice thundered across the valley again.
 +
 +“Event Three!”
 +
 +The crowd screamed in response.
 +
 +“FURNACE LINE!”
 +
 +Fire cannons burst along the starting gantry.
 +
 +Flames roared skyward as the next grid assembled.
 +
 +----
 +
 +Ace rolled the Nismo into position.
 +
 +The desert heat shimmered above the asphalt now.
 +
 +Engines idled around her — some nervous, some aggressive, some completely confident.
 +
 +Grouse’s car sat two positions ahead.
 +
 +Still vibrating with barely controlled energy.
 +
 +Mai guided the DB11 into its slot further back.
 +
 +Shammy leaned slightly toward the windshield.
 +
 +“…air pressure is unstable again.”
 +
 +Mai nodded.
 +
 +“Yes.”
 +
 +“That might make the downhill section dangerous.”
 +
 +Ace’s voice cut in over the radio.
 +
 +“Good.”
 +
 +----
 +
 +The lights ignited.
 +
 +Red.
 +
 +Red.
 +
 +Red.
 +
 +The desert seemed to pause again.
 +
 +Then the lights vanished.
 +
 +And twelve engines detonated.
 +
 +----
 +
 +The opening stretch was chaos.
 +
 +The road climbed steeply out of the valley before plunging into a tight sequence of switchbacks carved directly into the mountainside.
 +
 +Ace attacked the climb immediately.
 +
 +The Nismo’s lighter frame paid off here.
 +
 +She shot past two heavier machines before the first corner even arrived.
 +
 +One driver tried to block her.
 +
 +Ace braked impossibly late.
 +
 +The Nismo snapped inside the turn like a knife cutting fabric.
 +
 +Position gained.
 +
 +----
 +
 +Behind her the DB11 moved differently.
 +
 +Mai waited.
 +
 +Observed.
 +
 +Then accelerated through a gap created by two drivers fighting each other.
 +
 +Precision instead of aggression.
 +
 +Shammy watched the mountains.
 +
 +“…there’s turbulence ahead.”
 +
 +Mai adjusted the steering slightly.
 +
 +“Understood.”
 +
 +----
 +
 +The race plunged into Furnace Pass.
 +
 +The name was accurate.
 +
 +The road twisted between narrow rock walls that trapped heat like an oven.
 +
 +Air shimmered.
 +
 +Engines screamed louder in the confined space.
 +
 +Ace flew through the first series of turns with barely controlled slides.
 +
 +The Nismo danced across the asphalt, rear tires clawing for grip.
 +
 +Up ahead Grouse blasted through the same corners like a demolition charge.
 +
 +He clipped a barrier.
 +
 +Hard.
 +
 +The impact should have destroyed his suspension.
 +
 +Instead the car bounced once and continued.
 +
 +Grouse roared with laughter.
 +
 +“HORIZON!”
 +
 +----
 +
 +Ace caught him three turns later.
 +
 +“Still lucky,” she muttered.
 +
 +Grouse saw her in the mirror and immediately moved to block.
 +
 +Ace expected that.
 +
 +She dropped a gear and pushed the Nismo toward the inside line.
 +
 +The gap barely existed.
 +
 +The road narrowed to almost nothing against the rock wall.
 +
 +Ace went anyway.
 +
 +For half a second the Nismo skimmed the stone barrier so closely sparks danced from the side mirror.
 +
 +Then she cleared him.
 +
 +Grouse barked out another laugh.
 +
 +“Crazy little demon!”
 +
 +----
 +
 +Further back the DB11 approached the same section.
 +
 +Mai braked earlier than the others.
 +
 +The Aston Martin slid smoothly through the turn.
 +
 +Shammy’s voice was quiet but urgent.
 +
 +“…the probability field just spiked.”
 +
 +Mai’s eyes flicked to the telemetry display.
 +
 +The graph jumped sharply upward.
 +
 +“That’s new.”
 +
 +----
 +
 +Ahead of them the road dropped suddenly into a steep downhill section.
 +
 +Ace hit the descent first.
 +
 +The Nismo accelerated violently as gravity joined the engine.
 +
 +Speeds climbed past two hundred.
 +
 +Then two-twenty.
 +
 +Then higher.
 +
 +The next corner arrived far faster than expected.
 +
 +Ace slammed the brakes.
 +
 +The Nismo twitched dangerously.
 +
 +For a moment the rear end started to swing wide.
 +
 +Then something subtle happened.
 +
 +The car corrected itself.
 +
 +Not fully.
 +
 +Just enough.
 +
 +Ace felt it instantly.
 +
 +“…okay,” she murmured.
 +
 +“That’s cheating.”
 +
 +----
 +
 +Behind her Grouse attempted the same descent at an even higher speed.
 +
 +This time luck almost ran out.
 +
 +His car hit the next corner sideways.
 +
 +Completely out of control.
 +
 +The vehicle slammed into the guardrail.
 +
 +Hard enough that the metal barrier folded inward.
 +
 +The car spun.
 +
 +Flipped once.
 +
 +Twice.
 +
 +Dust exploded across the road.
 +
 +Ace shot past the wreckage.
 +
 +In the mirror she watched the impossible again.
 +
 +The car landed upright.
 +
 +Still running.
 +
 +Grouse’s laughter echoed across the radio channel.
 +
 +“SEE?!”
 +
 +----
 +
 +The race blasted out of Furnace Pass and back toward open desert.
 +
 +Only a few hundred meters remained.
 +
 +Ace pushed the Nismo harder.
 +
 +The finish line appeared ahead between two towering festival banners.
 +
 +The engine screamed at full throttle.
 +
 +Behind her the DB11 closed steadily.
 +
 +Mai’s precision was relentless.
 +
 +The Aston Martin surged closer with every second.
 +
 +But the distance wasn’t enough.
 +
 +Ace crossed the line first.
 +
 +Again.
 +
 +The crowd exploded.
 +
 +Fire cannons erupted beside the finish.
 +
 +Music thundered across the valley.
 +
 +----
 +
 +Grouse arrived thirty seconds later.
 +
 +His car rolled across the line sideways, body panels dented but engine still roaring.
 +
 +He climbed out laughing hysterically.
 +
 +“BEST. FESTIVAL. EVER.”
 +
 +----
 +
 +Mai parked the DB11 beside the Nismo in the paddock minutes later.
 +
 +Shammy stepped out slowly.
 +
 +“…the anomaly is accelerating,” she said quietly.
 +
 +Ace leaned against the hood again.
 +
 +“Meaning?”
 +
 +Mai held up the telemetry display.
 +
 +The probability curve had risen sharply.
 +
 +Each race was increasing it.
 +
 +“Meaning Horizon is building toward something.”
 +
 +Ace glanced toward the starting line where the next event preparations were already beginning.
 +
 +Her grin returned.
 +
 +“Good.”
 +
 +Across the valley the festival speakers roared again.
 +
 +“Event Four begins tonight!”
 +
 +The crowd screamed with delight.
 +
 +And somewhere beyond the mountains, Skulker’s car was finally returning to the valley.
 +
 +Because he had discovered something Horizon probably didn’t want anyone to understand.
 +