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Bug Chaser, commonly referred to as the Bug, is Jason's younger brother and navigator.

History[]

Early History[]

Under unknown circumstances, the boy known only as the Bug was left in the care of an orphanage in Falls Creek after his birth parents either died or abandoned him while he was extremely young. By the time he was two-years old, the Bug became closely attached to Jason, who was the only person he could stand to be around, throwing tantrums whenever the two were separated.

When Henry and Martha Chaser decided to adopt Jason, the orphanage dean asked them to adopt the Bug as well, since his tantrums would never cease if the two were separated, to which the two adults agreed.

The Bug and Jason proceeded to grown up on the Chaser farmland, occasionally helping their father with the workload. However, the Bug only grew close to Martha, allowing her to be able to hug and touch him, and having the confidence to talk to her alone, and for unknown reasons did not feel comfortable around Henry. Still, when he was three years old, the Bug was taught by Henry how to drive hover carts.

After Jason found and repaired the remains of an old Ferrari Pro F1 hover car, the Bug became the Argonaut's navigator, in which his extreme skills at calculation and course plotting became apparent, making him an expert at Gate Races. At age 12, the Bug and Jason qualified to enter the Indo-Pacific Regional Championships.

Hover Car Racer[]

Two minutes before the race began, the Bug was provided with the gate layout for the course, and quickly devised a highly-efficient race-plan for Jason to rack up as many points as possible. But within mine minutes of regional championships starting, the Argonaut had its tailfin heavily damaged by debris from another car after its driver failed to execute a 9-G turn, and so the Bug came up with an alternate plan for the course to compensate. Despite his and Jason's efforts, however, they ended up placing fifth in the Championship. After learning that Barnaby Becker had won an invitation to the International Race School, the Bug tried to cheer Jason up by telling his brother that he would have admitted Jason to the School if he were the Principal.

Upon returning to their pit bay, the brothers were surprised to find ex-racer Scott Syracuse examining the Argonaut's damaged tailfin, and the Bug drew out his original race-plan when Syracuse asked for it. Not long after the Bug and Jason returned home (and the Bug allowing Martha to briefly coddle him), Syracuse appeared at the Chaser home. Having been impressed by the Bug's racing plan - which Syracuse claimed was 97% optimal for the course - and Jason's ingenious use of thrusters to steer and the Bug's racing plan, Syracuse invited them to attend the Race School under his tutelage. While the family were briefly dumbfounded, the Bug went over to Jason to have him relay that Syracuse's race computer must have been broken since he believed his race-plan was perfect before the two boys eagerly accepted his invitation.

As their cruise liner docked at Hobart, the Bug and Jason were quickly accosted and taunted by Barnaby and Guido Moralez. When Barnaby called them motherless, the Bug spoke to Jason to point out that they weren't motherless; Barnaby was annoyed by the Bug's whispering rather than talking openly and moved to grab him, but Jason slapped the older boy's hand away and relayed Bug's comment to the bully. While in the Race Briefing room, Jason began talking with the mech chief Sally McDuff, and the Bug became shy and embarrassed when she said he was cute and asked how old he was. Upon arriving at Syracuse's first lesson, the Bug and Jason learned that Sally would be their team's mech chief, and the Bug quickly found himself liking the witty Scottish lass. After the long and grueling lesson, the exhausted Bug opted to retire to his and Jason's room rather than head to the dining hall.

During the first race of the school tournament, after the Argonaut lost two of its magneto drives, Jason asked Bug for his opinion about their next pit stop, to which the Bug answered that they could manage to complete the next lap-and-a-half before needing to pit alongside the other racers. Near the end of the race, after witnessing Ariel Piper lose control of the Pied Piper and head off-course, the Bug tried to assure Jason that rescue crews would help her, but Jason saw that they wouldn't reach her in time and chose to go after her rather than finish the race. After Jason had used the Argonaut to rescue Ariel, the Bug made a cheeky comment to his brother.

As the school year continued, the Bug was found to have the highest tolerance in withstanding g-forces on the school's centrifuge, taking playful delight as he reached 9.3G-s. Eventually, due to Team Argonaut continuing to experience mechanical difficulties which affected their positioning on the race championship ladder, they decided to speak to the Parts and Equipment Department. As Wernold Smythe dismissed Jason and Sally's complaints, the Bug noticed that Smythe had had a pocket-full of hundred-dollar bills and quietly pointed it out to Jason. As they discussed it afterwards, the team believed that, since Xavier Xonora's mech chief Oliver Koch had been in ahead of them, Smythe was being paid to supply teams with faulty parts.

Following a gate race where the Bug's race-plan nabbed Team Argonaut second place, the Bug and Jason were confronted by Teams Becker and Xonora, likely acting on their mentor Zoroastro's suggestion. Offering false congratulations to the Bug, Guido attempted to punch the boy in the face to undermine the better navigator's confidence, however Jason took the blow and baited Guido into continuing to hit him instead until Xavier called him off; the Bug thanked Jason for defending him, to which his brother assured him that he would anytime. The next morning, Principal Jean-Pierre LeClerq announced that the School had received four invitations to the New York Masters' Challenger Race, which would go to the top four racers at the end of the school championship, but as the team began wondering if they could finish in the top four, LeClerq also announced the cancellation of the next two races, meaning that their only chance of entering the Sponsors' Tournament now lay solely in winning Race 25.

Following an afternoon with their parents the day before, Bug and Jason took part in Race 25, but found themselves struggling and Jason considering a gambit through the shortcut mine. After spotting Xavier talking with Smythe, Jason had the Bug confirm that the shortcut mine was a former coalmine, before sharing his revelation that Smythe had been paid to map it out for the prince. As they followed Xavier through the mine, the Bug memorised their route to the other side and caught up to Varishna Krishna and Isaiah Washington. When Jason decided to skip their final pit stop, the Bug reminded him of Syracuse's previous advice against such methods, though Jason decided to go through with the plan anyway, and so the Bug helped Jason navigate their path through the shortcut, allowing them to narrowly win the race.

As the Chaser family always celebrated victories, the Bug chose his favourite chicken burger restaurant, Chooka's Charcoal Chicken, as the venue for their outing. Later, while practising a manual pit stop, the Bug chose to get out of the Argonaut to help Sally, which Syracuse applauded him for. Later, Team Argonaut attended the Sponsors' gala, where the Bug blushed at Ariel's compliment of his attire and felt intimidated by the presence of Umberto Lombardi of the Lombardi Racing Team.

As they were getting ready for their first Tournament race against Ariel, the Bug and Jason were presented with proper racing uniforms and helmets by Martha and Henry. Once the Sponsors' Tournament was over, having come in second place overall, the Bug and the family celebrated once again, and the brothers were surprised when Lombardi appeared and invited them to race with his team at the Italian Run, with the Bug nodding his agreement.

A few days before the Italian Run, after Jason had accepted Fabian's challenge to a match race, the Bug remained in the Argonaut's navigator seat while Ariel surreptitiously took Jason's place to race Fabian to pay the French racer back.

During the Italian Run, the Bug kept an eye on the other racers exiting the first pit stop while Jason tried to get them back onto the track, and soon tried to talk Jason down from recklessly taking the course's shortcut. Luckily, Syracuse provided the pair with directions through the shortcut, allowing them to move up into fifth place. But before they could cross the finish line, the Argonaut II's tailfin spontaneously exploded, causing them to crash into the Venice II canal upside down. The Bug was unable to escape due to his seatbelt being jammed, and so Jason had to launch his ejector seat down, allowing them to narrow escape as Kamiko Ideki's car crashed into the wreckage. While his seatbelt came loose, the Bug saw that Jason was now unconscious, and quickly helped him up to the surface so that rescue crews could help his brother. When Jason regained consciousness a couple of days later, the Bug hugged him and thanked Jason for saving him.

Soon after returning to the Race School, the Bug and Sally discovered that Jason was trying to regain his fragile confidence back by himself, and so admonished Jason for taking on the responsibility alone and not coming to them for help. As Jason and Sally debated the issue, the Bug surprised both of them by speaking openly - the first time that the Bug had ever spoken to two people at once - and assuring Jason that he only had to do his best, and that he would follow him anywhere. To help rebuild Jason's confidence, the Bug helped come up with strategies to avoid other racers and allow them to rapidly rises up the school championship ladder, so that by the end of Race 49, Team Argonaut was in a six-person contention for the final two places to the New York Challenger.

As they worked to beat Barnaby during Race 50, the Bug gave his opinion on using the Clashing Bergs to overtake Horatio Wong on Lap 39, and later suggested using all of the Clashing Bergs paths to overtake Xavier, a plan that Jason liked and remarked that the Bug had always been a daredevil at heart. During a power cut that forced a manual pit stop, the Bug and Jason helped Sally complete their stop and catch up to Barnaby, but as they passed him and approached the finish line, Barnaby performed a desperate kamikaze to keep from losing. Because the Argonaut had landed in a position that kept Jason from getting out of the car, Jason handed the transponder-equipped steering wheel to the Bug, pointing out that with pro rule of driver over-the-line in place for Race 50, and told his brother to run to the finish line only 500 meters away.

As the Bug ran desperately, the Devil's Chariot started pursuing the navigator. With the crowd seeing that it would be a close finish, they followed Henry's lead in shouting encouragement for the Bug, who made a final dive for the finish line as the Devil's Chariot caught up. A photo finish was used to determine who had made it over the line first, showing the Bug with his steering wheel over the line mere centimeters ahead of the Devil's Chariot's nose, getting Team Argonaut third place and the last invitation to the New York Challenger.

Once the School year was over, Jason, the Bug and Sally headed to New York to participate in the Challenger, during which they narrowly beat Xavier in winning, allowing them to enter the New York Masters proper. After a few days of preparations, the night before the Liberty Supersprint, the Bug heard his father come in to his and Jason's room, and - assuming they were asleep - told them that he was proud of their achievements and that the most important thing for them was to enjoy the upcoming races.

After completing the Liberty Supersprint, the Bug and Jason undertook the Manhattan Gate Race, for which the Bug's exceptional strategising allowed them to gain a superior lead over most of their rivals, and in spite of Fabian and Etienne Trouveau's forcing them to crash, the Bug and Jason stunned the audience as they pushed their car to the finish line in order to earn their continued participation in the Masters. Later, at the end of the Pursuit Race, Jason lost consciousness due to the G-forces on the Liberty's Elbow turn, and the Bug managed to reach over his brother to steer them straight on to the finish line in first place, for which the crowd cheered their support for the young navigator.

The night before the Quest Race, while the weight of what the Bug, Jason and Sally had accomplished despite their rookie status set in, Syracuse reassured them that they had proven themselves throughout the entire year as true racers. But while on the last straight to the finish line, the Argonaut's tailfin exploded once again, and after checking on the Bug, Jason ejected from the car and was propelled over the finish line just ahead of Alessandro Romba, winning their team New York Masters. As Jason and their mother hugged in celebration, Henry hesitated before the Bug surprised his father by hugging and speaking to him for the first time. As they reveled in victory, Lombardi offered everyone on Team Argonaut a contract to race under him full-time, and the Bug and Sally joined Jason on the winner's podium to accept their trophy before the cheering crowd. .

Personality[]

The Bug, believed to be autistic, is a very shy and quiet young man, who chooses to never speak to anyone aside from his brother and mother. He is a mathematical genius, which makes him the best kind of navigator, especially for gate races; one who can determine the best routes as soon as the layout becomes available. The Bug's short stature is more than made up for by his loyalty to his brother and team. Although rarely expressed openly, the Bug can also be considered somewhat cheeky, and is even daring when it comes to do-or-die moments races.

Skills[]

  • Genius-Level Intellect: In spite of his youth, the Bug is a mathematical and tactical genius, which makes him a valuable asset to Team Argonaut as their navigator. While gate race courses were only given out to races with only a few minutes before the start, making it difficult for most navigators to come up with a decent race-plan, the Bug is able to determine a near-to-perfect course plan. Bug can also make extraordinary calculations for difficult mathematical problems or pressing tactical analases in his head within seconds.
    • Master Tactician: As the navigator of Team Argonaut, the Bug has repeatedly shown his skills as a strategist, being able to come up with near or perfect plans for tackling gate races in the short minutes before a race commences. The Bug has used this skill to assist his brother in building their racing points during their difficult start at Race School to keep up with the more capable drivers, and to keep Jason away from other racers in another race while he rebuilt his nerve.
    • Photographic Memory: The Bug is fortunate enough to possess a photographic memory, being able to remember events and information with extraordinary detail. He was able to use this memorise the path through the Dunalley coalmine shortcut during Race 25 whilst the Argonaut was following the Speed Razor, allowing him to direct Jason when they took the shortcut the second time.
  • Trained Driver / Pilot: Despite his youth, the Bug has been taught to drive hover carts, meaning there is potential for him to quickly learn to drive a standard hover car. While he is otherwise too short to reach the pedals, the Bug was able to steer the Argonaut to the finish line while his brother's feet were still pressed down on the pedals.
  • Capable Mechanic: The Bug is a competent mechanic, being able to help Jason perform basic pitstops during races prior to Sally joining their team, though his engineering knowledge was not extensive enough for him to recognise long-term wearing on certain parts. When they first began practicing manual pit stops, the Bug was confident and knowledgeable enough to get out to help Sally in order to expedite the process.

Equipment[]

Vehicles[]

  • Argonaut: Jason's personal hover car, which he built from scratch after finding the external shell of an old Ferrari Pro F1 racer and repairing it with an assortment of used and low-quality parts, enough for it to be operational and capable of racing. The Bug serves as the Argonaut's navigator, sitting in the second seat behind the driver.
  • Argonaut II: A Ferrari F-3000 belonging to the Lombardi Racing Team which Lombardi loaned to Jason and the Bug in order to race in the Italian Run. The Bug became trapped in the car after it crashed due to his jammed seatbelt, though luckily Jason was able to eject his brother out before the car was destroyed.

Other Equipment[]

  • Team Argonaut Racing Uniform: When the Bug and Jason started racing, they were forced to wear mismatched denim overalls and motorcycle helmets due to the fact that they could not afford new or matching gear. However, Martha was able to make a custom-design uniform for both of her sons, made from standard racing uniform material primarily in white colours with some blue parts on the glove and boots, and lined with silver trim. Henry was also able to provide Bug and Jason with new Shoei helmets that matched their team's new uniform.
  • Pit Tarantula: To Be Added.
  • Lombardi Racing Team Uniform: The official racing uniform for the Lombardi Racing Team, which the Bug wore during the Italian Run. It is comprised of a black flightsuit with yellow piping and embroidery, black boots, and a yellow helmet and gloves.

Trivia[]

  • One of his preferred forms of relaxation is headset racing games.
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