The Chase
Alro's bladebike wobbles after nearly missing a coasting hovertaxi in front of him. The aeroway buzzes like a beehive during rush hour, its deafening roar the song of desperate corpmen thirsty for a soybeer after a 15-hour workday.
He curses as the Plexofluid tanker gets almost out of sight. The municipal jammers prevent his modified ride from moving on the vertical axis, so he has to resort to zigzagging through the traffic. If he can’t reach the aerotruck before entering the vacuum tunnel, the heist is over.
He sees an opening to the right, so he cuts straight into the hard shoulder. The free emergency lane allows him to start catching up to his target. The honking of other drivers cheer him on, to which he reciprocates with his middle finger.
Putting his sight back on what is ahead of him, Alro spots a repair crew working on one of the freeway's magnetic repulsors. A shuttle has pulled right next to him, trapping his bladebike in a deadly corridor of concrete and glass with an extra side of workers at the end of it. Collision with the unexpected blockade ahead seems unavoidable.
The desperate bladejockey pulls his bike sideways, facing the wall. He activates the lateral propulsor and wrenches the throttle all the way up. The improvised maneuver flips him mid-air while throwing the bottom of the bike against the concrete wall. The bike pushes forward parallel to the speedway, bypassing the gaping repair crew and showering them with sparks.
He drops back onto the aeroway, rapidly pulling behind his target mere meters away from the entry of the tunnel. Alro boards the transporter and sticks the bladebike to the back of the unsuspecting tanker like a remora, making a hollow metallic sound.
He tightens his void suit and sends a signal to his crew just seconds before entering the vacuum tunnel. The next part of the plan has begun.