Speed Racers - Part 1 (World Building Notes)

One topic I haven't gotten into is the idea of racing, and the difference between speeder groups, like the High Flyers, and normal groups who are only interested in racing and modifying speeders, and vehicles of that kind.

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The Ba'rani
When their world was destroyed by the sun going supernova of their cluster; the Ba'rani people spread out amongst free space and most of them landed on Jex as immigrants.

Most of these people had nothing to do, but soon some of them discovered illegal street racing and found that it could be worth a lot of money to any who won a race, and at that, they were able to get involved in the racing syndicate for a relatively low cost.

They started off by pooling their funds together to buy one good speeder; using this machine, Psyri T'Mani, became a champion of many races and with that, they were able to earn enough in winnings to kit out multiple speeders for some of the early members, who pooled their cash together for the first one.

Among the Ba'rani, racing was seen as the most respected activity someone could compete in, due to the danger that came with the territory, as well as being a dangerous sport, it took quick reactions and nerves of steel to enter such a competition.

Psyri T'Mani was killed by someone in a bar fight, after a particularly big race. Soon, the word came out that the person who killed him was a disgruntled loser of the race, Dessu Shani, who was affiliated with another syndicate that mainly consisted of humans. This group went by the name, The Payne Way, which was formed by a woman called Allyson Payne.

Supernovas
The other Ba'rani Community was shaken to the core by the loss of a hero of theirs, who had done so much to help the poorest members of their people. A lot of people went on to write ballads about him, and tell stories, and Psyri had become something of a folk hero, who would inspire many of the younger Ba'rani to strive toward a life of racing, as a way to carry on the tradition and continue to help their community. A lot of parents didn't want their kids to do so, however, due to the danger present, now on and off the race courses.

Many of the older Ba'rani grouped together and formed a gang, known as The Supernovas, and their ranks swelled from many of the Ba'rani who wanted to race, but were forbidden by their parents; due to being forbidden from getting involved in racing, many of The Supernovas members wore masks, and are anonymous, something which helped to protect their identity when their race group transitioned into a criminal organisation.

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Transition Into Criminality
The Supernovas continued to gain steam, and while this was happening a rivalry formed between them and The Payne Way, after the murder of Psyri the leader of The Payne Way, Allyson, came forward to ensure the Ba'rani people that it was not ordered by her and was little more than a disagreement in a bar.

Most of the Ba'rani didn't believe this, but without proof to say otherwise, most had no choice but to accept it.

However, when The Supernovas formed, many angry people in the gang made hits against The Payne Way members, and as time went on, these random hits became a war; not only was it known in the underworld of Jex, but it became mainstream knowledge when news outlets started to look into the conflict.

It didn't take long for a bitter hatred to form, and due to this negative attention, the authorities started to clamp down on these speeder groups and even took note of the illegal street races, which prior to this weren't much of an issue.

Races started to get raided and after many arrests of the organisers, the races stopped, and most of all, the prize per race, didn't make it worth the risk of participating.

The war continued and got worse as time went on, and some of The Supernovas members discovered something that did make the hobby worthwhile. The discovery of a drug known as Twist; which got its name from what taking it can do to humans.

Twist affected humans in such a way, that it made their bodies contort and twist up, and would lead to most of them dying in horrific ways. This fact alone, made selling it to humans a rite of passage for most Ba'rani, as a way to get their own back on them, and by proxy, The Payne Way.

The Split
The Supernovas split into two groups after a while of introducing the sale of Twist.

Some of the members went full-time into the underworld of Jex, selling drugs and taking hits on members of The Payne Way, after a short while they started killing people as a way to defend their place at the top of the criminal hierarchy.

This group changed its name to, The Nova Boys, and became incredibly dangerous.

A large portion of The Supernovas became The Nova Racers, and moved into the world of legal racing, as a way to keep the tradition alive and make the sport appeal to a larger audience. They created their own circuits, and it became a great pastime for the people of Jex, and more so, for their people.

The Payne Way

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This group suffered a big defeat at the hands of The Nova Boys when their leader Allyson was assassinated on a race track as five speeders flew onto the track.

While this was happening, their HQ was being raided by the brunt of The Nova Boys forces, and when the rest of their members arrived back after what happened at the course, they were ambushed. It was a blood bath and was known as the worst criminal act take place on Jex. 74 people died in one go, and the survivors drifted into obscurity, ending The Payne Way.