The Showoff...

Author: OZ
Adaptation: OZ

3:40pm, Tokyo.

The movement around the Feroci lot was slow for the time. During the entire morning, rain took place from the usual sun, showing people once again why they truly can’t believe on the weather forecast. Only now, the sun was able to show up, but still, hidden by dark clouds, making the afternoon look more like a prelude for a cold dark night.

In days like these, people prefer to stay home, taking care of their personal lives and business. Noone like to drive on the extremely wet highways, and racing on them is a sure shot for a nasty accident if you aren’t good enough to hold your car on the road. On the garage, .59 just finished the day’s work on the several project cars and goes to meet Dal on the lobby, who was already there doing nothing as usual. With the expectation of no one showing up soon to bother with, they decided to setup a little recreation using an old SNES rig that was kept around for such times. Mario Kart popped in, time for some multiplayer marathon. Dal, seeing the cartridge, reminds it can have up to 4 players. They need 2 extra pair of hands to get a decent contest going, Maceo was there but he disappeared right after some skirt came strolling down the road, and now he was nowhere to be found… as usual, but OZ was on the garage stall #3, working on his Mirage. Seems that the playtime was guaranteed…

Dal gets the intercom and calls the phone on the garage. Supposedly, OZ should be there but no one was answered it. Something was not right. It have been weeks since OZ started working on his car, and he was expending so much time on it that people could almost swear that he living at the garage, only going home to eat and get a shower. Dal knew it would be a pain to convince him to leave the car and join them, but usually, he would at least answer the intercom. He went down to the garage and knocked the door…

No answer… not even a curse word…

So he knocked it again, and more, and called him out, and screamed and cursed, but no freaking answer! Dal was making such racket that .59 soon showed up thinking something bad happened. He unlocked the door and entered the garage, looking for a possibly passed out OZ, but no one was there. To be more precise, not only he wasn’t there, but his mirage also wasn’t. The place was mint clean, practically ready to receive another client with shelves and benches organized. It was 4 in the afternoon and no sign of OZ and his car. Where the f*ck did he go??? Looking outside, they felt a bit relieved when they saw that his car transporter wasn’t around either… “He probably took it to have it painted”, .59 commented, locking the door of the garage again.

Midnight.

The roads were a bit more dry, all thanks to the bit of sun that came during the afternoon, still, that situation would be considered to have worsened the roads, mixing wet and dry sections of the road was still a bad combo. The wind decided to show up as well, making the weather looks colder than the normal.

On the Feroci Lot, the movement was still slow, even with the presence of most of the team members for the usual GT3 marathon, something that always a choice for slow nights when the people outside didn’t represent much a challenge for they. Besides the competition was always heated, with no one giving up, making it last long enough to make the boring hours pass in a blink of an eye.

But not tonight.

Down from Wangan, people at the lot could hear it, 3 unmistakable high pitched engine notes, and they were coming in fast. The randoms at the Feroci Lot thought that it could be a few of the team members arriving, but people inside knew they weren’t. Those engines were tuned, but not by them. Soon, 3 exotics descend the highway, making their way into the Feroci lot. One by one they parked next to the garage entry, making a symphony of cylinders that could wake a deaf guy just by the earth rumble. The 3 cars shut their engines simultaneously, leaving many mouths agape in the parking lot. Even thou with notoriety of the place, it’s uncommon to see exotics on the hands of street racers, especially tuned one like these 3.

The first on the line was a white F360 CS, fitted with complete GT-C bodywork and Kreissieg exhaust. The Black BBS LM-GT rims and Brembo gold anodized disks closed the package. Right next to it, looking more civilized, but no less fast than its predecessor, a dark blue widebody Gallardo coupe with a twin turbo V-10. For a car released not so long ago, having such body kit and engine development ready and in use, it was clearly that someone had strong ties with high profile people to have access to those parts. But still, none of those cars were able to over shine the last one…

For the guys on Feroci, hearing that engine was not something uncommon, but yet was one that would get most of them a bit worried. They knew that someone had to be really crazy to put one of these on the streets, and even more to let alone tune and race such rare car. As they pour out of the shop, the view of the black F1-LM was something to make them guessing who would be the one to race it. The leader of the group approaches them.

“Hi, sorry to be rude, but we are looking for a fellow of yours named “Maceo”? We have unfinished business with him.” he asks with extreme politeness, seemingly looking around for him. Uzer’s explains to him that he’s nowhere around, leaving the guy with a deceptioned face. He says he would wait for his arrival, and end up talking about the F1 with the rest of the team. They are so concentrated on their chat that they barely notice OZ parking his carrier truck near the lot entrance…

Catching the attention of some people, and mostly, from the 2 exotic owners who aren’t talking with the Feroci guys, OZ starts unloading a covered car from the transporter. He carefully takes off the cover, revealing the finished bodywork of his mirage. At first, whispers and laughs can be heard in the parking lot, being the loudest one from the F360 guy. No wonder why, it’s not every day that you see a Mitsubishi Mirage C73A sedan turned into a truck, or even more, painted in dark pink red. Comments of how come such “lousy thing” could be a Feroci car start to be heard, running from mouth to mouth. But all that dies, at the moment he turns on the engine.

Emanating from the depths of the HKS Carbon exhaust, the highly boosted 4G63T springs to life for the first time with a long, dirty and loud rev, silencing all the words and noises on the lot. First gear is planted, and the 760ps engine is tamed to slowly put the 4wd dark widebody truck into motion, making its way through the parked cars. The view Advan RS centerlock wheels fitted with A032R tires and Endless Racing Mono 6 calipers were a giveaway of how seriously tuned this car was. Everybody was stumbled by it, mouths were agape again. Few could believe that a louse Mirage could be tuned to that level. It was so customized that they would have second thoughts about challenging it for a race.

He rolled the lot till reaching his parking spot, coming to shut his engine back off again. This time, only whispers could be heard on the silence the followed it. Without even racing, the tides had turned, showing once again whose team was the one to be feared there. OZ jumped off his car and made his way to the shop door. A small, barely noticeable grin could be noticed on his face for the ones who dared to look at it. As well, the burning stinky eyes given by the exotic owners as soon he passed them…

“You love to make people hates us, don’t you?” .59 exclaimed at OZ, laughing at how f*cked the night was going to be…

Late Night Showoff

Author: OZ

3:40pm,Tokyo.

The movement around the parking lot is a bit slow today, it have been raining during all morning, and only now, the sun was able to show his graceness, leaving the Wangan roads a dangerous place to drive on.

In days like these, the Feroci crew prefers to stay home, taking care of their lives, and since there’s no expectation of someone showing up so soon at the Garage .59 parking lot, .59 decides to create some recreation by setting up a SNES gaming marathon with Dal, which was already there doing nothing as usual. He picks up some racing games, snacks and a 6’ Heineken pack from the fridge and ask Dal to call OZ at the garage #3 stall while he get everything ready at the TV room.

Supposedly, OZ should be working on his Wangan car project. It have been weeks since he started it, working day and night to get it ready, he was nearly living at the place to be honest, only going home to get a shower or eat something. DAL knew that it would be a pain to convince him to leave the work a bit and come out and play, OZ used to be pure stubborn while working on something, not giving up until he finish it. He knocked the door, but as expect, no answer, so, he knocked again 2 times more and called him out, but no answer again, not even a curse word. Something was wrong, usually OZ would curse and respond at the 3rd time, but no answer was coming. He opened the door and looked around, but no one was there. It was almost 4 in the afternoon and no sing of him, a pretty odd fact for someone who from the last weeks spent all afternoons self-trapped there. Also, his carrier truck wasn’t there also. “He probably went out to pick some car parts” DAL though, closing the door behind him.

Night came by. The roads are a bit more dry due the afternoon sun, but still dangerous for some fast driving. Some people start to park their cars onto the parking lot, while inside, the owners of the place, the Feroci members, enjoy their selves playing the usual GT3 championship, always set up on slow nights, especially when the people outside doesn’t represent competition and appears to be more interested in chatting about cars and girls than racing. Actually, the competition inside the store is so fierce that is drawing all the attention today, making it last hours long, with nobody giving in. They are so concentrated that they barely notice OZ parking his carrier truck outside.

OZ shuts the engine off and go to the back of the truck, he starts to lower a covered car, which appear to be a totally striped Nissan Cube after he removes the covering cape. Whispers and laughs are heard in the parking lot, but he just ignores they, pushing the vehicle on his way to the garage #3 stall. “Something is going on outside”, says .59 after hearing the garage door engine working. “It’s probably OZ, only he has the garage door control and I can see his truck from here. He probably came to finish his car, don’t bother calling him here, he’ll probably prefer to stay working on his car”. Dal replies, turning back then to the games again. “Yeah, I know, but I wonder why he brought another striped car in…” says .59 after seeing OZ push the Nissan inside the garage.

But before they could make their selves comfortable at the TV room again, they hear the bursting sound of an engine starting, followed by a long and loud rev. the sound was dirty and deep, a typical sound made by a heavy tuned engine. The sound was so noticeable that even the people who weren’t inside the parking lot could hear it. All the eyes turned to the garage#3 stall, where the sound was coming from. A pair of bright xenon lights was lit, and a dark red Ute started to appear from the darkness inside.

Everybody was stumbled, what car was that, it looked like it was a lousy Mitsubishi Mirage 1990, but it was so customized that everyone would have second thoughts about challenging it for a race. He rolled the parking lot lane passing before all parked cars and stopped beyond the exit, revving constantly, like calling they for a race. Hazard lights on, that was the signal, now it was real, he wanted a race. Who was going to take on him?…