Xavier Xonora, nicknamed the Black Prince, is the prince of the Monsei Principality, a skilled hover car racer, and Jason Chaser's primary rival at the International Race School.
History[]
Early History[]
Born to Francis Xavier and an unnamed mother, Xavier Xonora was the heir to the Principality of Monsei, a small sovereign European state near Monaco.
When he reached driving age, Xavier took an interest in hover car racing, and his father gifted him with an expensive Lockheed-Martin ProRacer-5, the best production hover car money could buy. Naming it the Speed Razor, Xavier participated in numerous races, where it was discovered that he had an immense talent as a driver, which he supplemented by acquiring the best equipment for the car, and by recruiting the talented mechanic Oliver Koch as the mech chief for his team.
Around the time he turned 18, Xavier won a regional championship, and with it an invitation to study at the International Race School in Hobart, Australia.
Hover Car Racer[]
At the end of the entrance assembly, Xavier was informed that he and his team would be undertaking classes under Zoroastro, a former world racing champion who also happened to be Xavier's uncle. After the first day's lessons, Xavier and his team joined Zoroastro for dinner, alongside his uncle's other students, Barnaby Becker and his team.
In the first race of the School's race season, Xavier effortlessly beat the other racers, coming in first place, which allowied him to qualify for the Sponsors' Tournament that year. Following the third race, Xavier's talents and status as royalty became well-known throughout the school. Many of the female mech chiefs were enamoured by Xavier's good looks, and many society mothers in Hobart invited him to dinner parties in the hope that he would take an interest in their daughters, though it is unknown if Xavier deigned to accept any. On one occasion, as he was passing by Jason Chaser, the younger racer offered Xavier a casual greeting, though the prince took it as an affront and ordered Jason to address him properly if he had to speak to him again before walking off.
As the School's racing season continued, Xavier dominated through most of the races, and by the end of Race 15, he was securely placed first on the school championship ladder, having achieved an astonishing five victories thus far. During this time, having learned of the shortcut mine that was occasionally used in the school's races, Xavier decided to have it mapped out so that he could use it if necessary. As the mine was off-limits to students, Xavier had Oliver pay Wernold Smythe of the school's parts and equipment department to do so on their behalf.
Xavier only narrowly won Race 22 by a single point, as Bug Chaser's plan for the gate race's course proved superior, with Xavier's talent being his only saving grace. Instigated by Zoroastro, Barnaby and his navigator Guido Moralez intended to beat the Bug to shatter his confidence, with Xavier and Oliver joining them to trap the Chaser brothers on a staircase. As Jason ended up taking the blows to protect the Bug, Xavier ordered Moralez to stop, and as the group moved to leave, Jason told Xavier to take them on where it counted, on the track, though Xavier offered no response.
During Race 25, Xavier was in the lead, but during Lap 11, as he was exiting the Pit Lane, Brent Hurst car almost collided with the Speed Razor, affording Varishna Krishna and Isaiah Washington the opportunity to race ahead. After a few more laps, Xavier returned to his pit bay, where Smythe - who had only finished mapping the mine the night before - had just relayed the path to Oliver so that they could use it to catch up. Heading back onto the track, Xonora headed into the mine, followed closely by the Argonaut, as Jason had realised Xavier now knew the correct path. Upon emerging, Xavier and Jason closed the gap with Krishna and Washington, but as the race neared its end, Jason skipped his last pit stop in a desperate bid to win. Xavier hurriedly pursued him, intending to beat Jason and prevent another student from qualifying for the Sponsors' Tournament, using the shortcut mine to close the distance. Xavier caught up to the Argonaut near the finish line, but while Xavier pumped his fist in victory, a photo was required to determine the winner, with it being determined that Jason had won by a mere 4.2cms.
The night before the Sponsors' Tournament, Xavier attended the Sponsors' gala, with his father joining him at the event. As only 14 racers had qualified, the top two racers in the School tournament - Xavier and Barnaby - were given byes for Round 1, allowing them to move straight on to Round 2. Thus, Xavier's first opponent of the day was Horatio Wong; in the end, Wong was already behind the prince when he foolishly chose to pit, and so Xavier was able to lap the Chinese racer on Lap 11, winning the race. Xavier then faced Krishna in the semi-finals, though he seemed to have taken advice from Zoroastro to tip the odds in his favour by sabotaging his opponent's magneto drives. As such, after 10 laps, Krishna experienced problems that forced him to try to take a quick pit stop, allowing Xavier to lap Krishna soon after, winning the match.
Though Barnaby was caught after doing the same to Jason, none of the officials seemed to consider that Xavier may have sabotaged Krishna in their match. In the final match, Jason managed to endure the longest against the black prince than anyone else despite having had to work far harder during the day's races than Xavier, taking the race all the way to the finish line. Still Xavier emerged the winner, though he only beat Jason by three thousandths of a second. As Xavier accepted his trophy for winning the tournament, he was taken aback when the crowd cheered even harder for Jason than they did for him. Afterwards, Xavier was approached by Antony Nelson, the manager of the Lockheed-Martin Factory Team, who had been impressed by the prince's efforts during the tournament and offered him the opportunity to participate in the Italian Run as an apprentice, which Xavier accepted.
Since he would miss a few of the School's races while he was away, Xavier spent the next several weeks ensuring that his team's first-place rank on the championship ladder would not be compromised during his absence. After Race 37, he had secured enough points to ensure that Krishna could not take first place even if the Indian racer won all three of the races Xavier would miss. to secure their position while they were gone, managing to reach fourth overall. He then set off for Rome, where he spent a week practising alongside world champion Alessandro Romba. He took the media's interest in him in his stride, proclaiming a modest goal of making a top ten finish for the Italian Run, and Xavier was marked by the media as the heir apparent and protégé to Romba.
Thanks to his efforts in the pole positioning shootout, Xavier earned the ninth place start for the Italian Run. He then attended the opening gala event, and happened to run into Jason and his team. As they spoke about Xavier's pole position, King Francis approached Xavier, and after awkwardly acknowledging Jason's greeting, Xavier's father asked him to join him so that he could introduce him to someone. Before leaving, Xavier mockingly asked if Jason's parents were present, as he'd heard of good caravan parks on the outskirts of Rome (having likely heard from Barnaby how poor Jason's family was), to which Jason called the prince an asshole. Xavier was then introduced by his father to Dido Emanuele, Xavier's cousin from his mother's side, whom Francis had decided to recruit to both keep an eye on and undermine Jason, having become aware that Xavier's rival was becoming a potential threat to his son's racing career.
After the Italian Run had begun, Xavier quickly managed to move up into seventh place by the time they'd progressed into the Alps, then sixth when Dwayne Lewicki was taken out. By the time they'd moved down to the southernmost part of the course, Xavier had moved further up to fourth, but as he was passing by the Taranto mines, Xavier was shocked to see Jason emerge from the shortcut right behind him, having not expected to see him again since Jason had been lagging in last place. Xavier managed to maintain his position all the way through the finish line in Venice II, the young prince's fourth place finish impressing the spectators.
When Xavier returned to the International Race School, his placement in the school championship ladder was unchanged, but in his absence, Zoroastro had been organising a number of alliances with other racers to secure Xavier and Barnaby's standings by the end of the year, so that they would be granted two of the four invitations to the Challenger Race in New York, which would grant its own winner an opportunity to participate in the New York Masters. After winning Race 41, Xavier learned from Dido - who had come to Hobart to continue her role - that Jason had begun to fear having his tailfin damaged (as a result of a mysterious explosion that destroyed his car at the end of the Italian Run). Though Jason eventually overcame this, Dido continued to report on Jason's strategies for races to Xavier and his allies, even as Xavier continued to dominate through the final races regardless. For Race 49, Xavier lazily claimed 1 point from 10th place, though this allowed him to reach an unassailable lead that ensured that, no matter the outcome of the final race, he would still win the school championship.
With his own invitation to the Challenger secured, Xavier decided to race shotgun for Barnaby, who was in a six-person contention for the final two invitations. As such, as soon as Race 50 began, Xavier intentionally maneuvered in behind his stablemate, intending to keep Jason from getting to go to New York. After the racers pitted during Lap 41, Xavier feigned car trouble by the exit, intentionally blocking Jason to put distance between him and Barnaby. As Washington zoomed forward, aiming for the Argonaut's tailfin, Jason attempted to skirt around Xavier, only for the black prince to dart off with Jason in pursuit. Xavier managed to keep Jason from passing him as they neared the final elimination, but when one of the Clashing Bergs Paths proved to be not enough, Jason daringly used all three paths to successfully overtake the Speed Razor. Despite Xavier's efforts, he could not retake fourth place from Jason, and thus was eliminated when he reached the start-finish line.
The race soon ended with Jason beating Barnaby, the young racer and Ariel Piper winning the last two invitations to the New York Challenger. Furthermore, Jason had realised Dido was a spy; when he confronted her about it, Jason told Dido to relay to Xavier and Barnaby that he was back at full strength and would take them down the next time they were on the track together. At the subsequent end-of-year presentation dinner, Xavier received an award from the school for his victory in the school championship, and another for being the best driver of the year. Soon after, Xavier, Krishna, Ariel and Jason were called onstage by the acting principal to be congratulated on their efforts and for winning the invitations to the Challenger Race.
Xavier soon made his way to New York to participate in the Challenger, and on the morning of the race, Xavier and Dido approached Jason in his pit bay to boast that their previous races had shown that Xavier was the far superior in every aspect than Jason, thus he would be the one to earn entry into the New York Masters. Once the Challenger began, Xavier and Jason quickly took to the front of the field, and as the race wore on, Jason lost some ground to Xavier, which Oliver reported to Xavier. Once they hit the home straight, the narrowly-leading Xavier prematurely celebrated his victory by pumping his fist in the air; this was a fatal mistake, however, as Jason had been intentionally losing ground, and used Xavier's overconfidence to catch him off-guard with a sudden charge and win the race.
Soon after, Xavier was in his pit bay when Jason arrived to congratulate him on a good race; after initially ignoring him, Xavier then questioned how Jason had managed to beat him when everything that year had proven that he was the better driver. Jason replied that it was because Xavier was relying on his talent while Jason actually put in the work to improve, and Jason ended the conversation by telling Xavier it was for that reason that he would always beat Xavier if they ever raced again in the future.
Personality[]
While possessing the same narcissistic confidence as most other talented drivers, Xavier is primarily an image of being cool and calm. He is reliant on his racing talents, not bothering to put in the effort to improve
Skills[]
- Master Driver / Pilot: As seems to be standard practice for anyone wishing to learn how to drive a hover car, Xavier is capable of piloting the aviation-type hover car. Xavier is an extremely talented driver, easily able to perform aerial feats and maneuvers that in the present day are only known to pilots of fighter jets. Xavier's talents as a racer won him the Sponsors' Tournament and the Race School championship with minimal effort or training, and was one of the best racers to ever enter the International Racing School. His talent for racing even allowed him to place fourth in the professional league Italian Run over several older and more experienced racers.
- Expert Tactician: During his time at the International Race School, Xavier has repeatedly shown his skills as a strategist, being able to adapt to unusual situations, even ones that take place off the track, and come up with strategies to ensure his victories. He also acknowledges his mech chief's observations of his advantages over his rivals and act in accordance as to whether they are gaining or losing ground to other racers.
Equipment[]
Vehicles[]
- Speed Razor: Xavier's personal hover car which his father purchased for him, a highly expensive and efficient black-painted Lockheed-Martin ProRacer-5. Xavier drove the Speed Razor throughout his time attending the International Race School, and during the Challenger Race.
- Lockheed-Martin Factory Team Car: A racing-class hover car belonging to the Lockheed Martin Factory Team, which was loaned to Xavier while he was participating in the Italian Run as their apprentice.
Other Equipment[]
- Team Xonora Racing Uniform: Like all racers, Xavier has a racing uniform, comprised of a crash helmet, leather gloves and boots, and racing overalls. All pieces of Xavier's team uniform are coloured in his typical colour of choice, charcoal-black.
- Pit Tarantula: A standard piece of equipment for hover car racers, this machine aids in pit bay maintenance during races, which Xavier's mech chief - Oliver Koch - managed during pit stops to keep their team's car in top working order by replacing worn or damaged parts, as well as refilling coolant.
- Team Lockheed-Martin Racing Uniform: The official racing uniform for the Lockheed-Martin Factory Team, which Xavier wore during the Italian Run.
Trivia[]
- Xavier favours the colour black; wearing black casual clothes, racing gear, and formal wear, and having his car painted all black. Along with his black-coloured hair, this has earned him the moniker of "the black prince".
- The number chosen by Xavier for the Speed Razor is Number 1, a considerably arrogant choice considering the number being is typically applied to the car of the top racer in the pro-circuit (Alesandro Romba's La Bomba); though as a racing student, this was allowed.
- Xavier is the first character of royal birth to appear in Reilly's novels.