“Just try to stay out of our way,” ECHO
said, climbing into her pod.
“I’m going to win the race. That’s what
I do,” A11_4_ON3 snapped as he climbed
into his own. “If you’re in my way, I’m going
to plow right through you.” His pod closed
around him. Through the clear glass top, he
could still see ECHO glaring.
Inside there were several control features.
The dashboard glowed with meters displaying
the pod’s speed as well as engine heat and distance
traveled. A monitor off to the right served as a
rearview mirror and there was a map screen next
to it. The steering wheel looked exactly like one
from a car, but there were no foot pedals. Instead,
on the right-hand side was a lever that functioned
as a throttle. The farther the driver pushed it
forward, the faster the pod would go. Next to the
throttle was a hand brake for quick turns. There
was also a button labeled “weapon,” but it wasn’t
illuminated like everything else inside.
“We’re on the same team!
Don’t
try to
shove us out of the way,” ECHO’s voice
sounded in his pod.
8
