Catalyst

fiction by michael werneburg

"Yes, Jim, this clip shows what happens. You'll recall we were discussing rider #302, the mercenary Warren Goss. Well, Warren seems to have come to the race prepared to get his hands dirty. He's knocked out two riders in the last few minutes simply by knocking them off their bikes."

I knew there was no point in looking back, but I did so anyway. All I saw was excited onlookers and stopped traffic. I concentrated on the rough route I'd selected. It was a narrow street that descended into the Old Town along the side of the escarpment that ringed the bay. As I descended, I passed motor vehicles coming up the street; one driver leaned on his horn. Apparently, he hadn't heard there was a race on!

"You can see here, if we go to slow motion, that Goss is being overtaken by a more experienced competitor. He reacts in a heart-beat; just knocks the guy off his seat!"

"Wow, what a competitor. What's that he's using, do you think, Dan?"

"Well, it could be a stun weapon, but you can see the other rider is clearly quite mobile as he falls-"

"And in his reaction."

"Yes, that's Robert Sharp, in his third open cycle race. He'd made up some ten positions since the initial racecourse was abandoned, and was looking to make it eleven in passing Goss. He's a tough fellow, and was quick to climb back into the saddle," said the color man.

"So, perhaps a simple club?"

"I think that's it, Jim."

I didn't push myself as I descended the long slope. Still a little winded from the long climb, I was still so far ahead of the pack I simply made myself small and let all that steel pull me downhill. Also, I was rather confident in the road ahead. I was, after all, a local, and had been cycling these roads for the last few years, and I knew where I was going. I knew routes that would avoid the traffic, and routes that would avoid awkward intersections and rough surfaces. Few, if any, of my competitors would have that advantage on such an unmarked 'course'.

I leaned into the wind and let my breathing calm. Near the bottom of the hill, I turned left and crossed the old LRT tracks. Then into the lane way next to the tracks, and there would be no traffic for the next kilometer.

"Here's the footage of Goss's second move, not even a minute later. You can see, as he approaches another rider, that he's got something in mind. He's got that club out again, and is riding single-handed as he slowly overtakes the other rider. Now, that other rider is #19, Coxona Wen, from Hong Kong. She was an outside favorite, and had made excellent time since Tilescu reached the first marker. In fact, it seems that she was slowing only to catch up with one of the defenders on her team when Goss caught her up. Now watch here, as he takes out her ankle-"

"Ow!"

"And down she goes. She's since recovered from her spill, but hasn't re-entered the race."

"Not a good day for the defenders, is it?"