XGRA: Ultrasonic Rainbow

by Brotato

Ch.4: Arrival and Tryouts

Chapter 4

Arrival & Tryouts

The CEO of the XGRA stared out the window of his office, which held a rather spectacular view of the city on Mars at two-hundred stories high. There were no glaring holo-signs advertising products and services he could care less about. No buildings or ships zipping about and interrupting his view. All that stood before him was a sense of calm and peace that he truly savored.

Though down below, Mars was anything but calm as constant billows of red dust attached to every thing and person who ventured outside. It was a requirement for everyone to wear a mask complete with an air filter and eye protection just to move about in the lower streets. Though sometimes the winds would pick up and send the dust high in the air; even as high as his tower.

For now the wind was calm, giving a clear view of the gas giant in the sky. Its swirling colors of orange, white, and red more beautiful than any artist.

He raised his forefinger and thumb near his eye as if holding it in place. "Beautiful."

"Mr. Cawley?" A timid voice called from behind, snapping him for his thoughts.

"Yes?" He turned around slowly. His graying trimmed beard and combed short hair seemed to match perfectly with his black and white business suit. Appearance was a must in his book, and not coming to work looking your best was a risk of termination. Which explained the reason why he had a smile of appreciation on his face.

Standing before him was his secretary. A lithe woman wearing modest business attire of a knee-length skirt and sweater-vest; her hair bunched neatly in a bun to keep it away while working. She always carried her touch-tablet with her everywhere, considering he always had her working. Everything from what time it was on earth to how many viewers would be watching this years races was on that tablet. For being such a hard worker, she became an important asset to the company, and had the privilege of being the only human allowed to barge into his office without knocking.

"I thought you'd like to know you just received a message from Professor Miles." She then noticed the puzzled stare he gave her. "The zoologist you hired several days ago. Along with..." She flipped through several menus on her tablet, her polished nail acting just as well as the tablet pen she never uses. "One security squad, his assistant, and the ship 'The Buccaneer' along with its crew."

"Oh! yes of course." He took out his cell phone and flicked it open; scanning over the message with dark-green eyes. Mr. Cawley really had no idea who this zoologist called Doctor Miles was. Though he remembered half-joking a request for his subjects to hire one, which at the time he didn't really think they would.

He reminded himself to joke about firing the person who did such a thing. Then do so the day after that.

To my employer,

First I would like to thank you on allowing me this chance to join this crew on discovering a rather familiar, yet fascinating species. I'd also like to-

Blah, blah, blah, just give me the reason for the message. He slowly dragged the slidebar down while skimming through the message, wondering how he managed to write so much about such a topic. Only until he reached somewhere in the middle did he find something that at least caught his eye.

-and the mission was quite a success. The female pony named Rainbow Dash has joined us and will be arriving back on Mars soon. Also, If it's not too much trouble-

That's exactly what he wanted to see. Closing his phone with a soft snap, he purposefully strode towards the door. "Lidia, I have some preparations that need to made made. Prepare the lounging room for our special guest, and please..." He paused through the doorway. "Make sure she's comfortable during her stay."

Lidia nodded her head and began to prepare the necessary arrangements with several taps of her tablet. "Of course, Mr. Cawley."

---

Welcome to mars, Rainbow Dash heard from the captain over the ship's speakers. Herself and the rest of the passengers stood in the cargo bay as they waited for her to set the ship down. The strange swirling colors outside their ship, which the humans named "slip-space", made their journey last only several hours. Miles had explained how it worked, but the whole concept sounded like something Twilight would have more interest in.

Thankfully the flight wasn't too boring and there was plenty of stuff to do. She had joined the crew in several games of poker, which she didn't like since part of the game relied on luck. She preferred anything that needed a quick hoof and rapid thinking to win.

She also got a personal tour of the ship from the captain herself. Strangely, she was very friendly compared to how she treats the crew, and explained it was how she grew up during her rough lifestyle on Earth. It was becoming obvious she had something bottled up, but Rainbow thought it be best to not touch the subject.

Miles, on the other hoof, began to remind her of Twilight. Except instead of books he was always nose-deep on the thin device called a tablet. He seemed pretty nice, though he asked very odd questions. Such as: Did you dye your mane and tail like that? Do you find eating meat disgusting, or just uninterested in the concept? What is the average airspeed of an unladen pegasus? Nonetheless, even with the questioning, she enjoyed her time with the crew.

A heavy thud and the feeling of coming to a stop told her they had reached their destination at last. The nameless suited man, which Rainbow finally decided to officially call "Mr.Suit", stood in front of the bay door with the security team. Miles, Jacob, and herself were behind them, thought Miles and Jacob had smiles on their faces.

"What's gotten you both in such a good mood?" Rainbow questioned.

Miles shrugged. "Good memories of this place. I haven't been to Mars since my studies on Zoology with Jacob here," he said while pointing a thumb at his friend beside him. "When I was called to visit your planet, I was busy on Earth helping protect endangered species." He shook his head as he continued. "It's a sad thing some humans can't respect other forms of life."

"He's pretty serious about it," Jacob added his two cents into the conversation. "Once, he punched a poacher in the face for attempting to hunt Pumas. It was quite a sight." A sly grin formed on his face. "You might even say he's got a fascination for-"

"Okay! that's a enough of that," Miles interrupted loudly. The guards turned their heads to look at him and he let out a nervous laugh.

"Damn," the Captain cursed. I was hoping it wouldn't be so windy. Masks on people. Bay door is coming down soon, and I'll meet with y'all after I lock the ship up.

Everyone reached for several black masks that lined the bay walls. When all the humans had a mask on, the sound of breathing through filters filled the room.

Rainbow Dash raised an eyebrow and spoke with slight panic in her voice. "Uh, what about my mask?" The bay door opened with its usual loud noises of metal on metal and the hinges coming off. Flurries of red dust entered the ship's cargo bay, excited to find more objects to invade and cling to. Rainbow started coughing as she inhaled several particles of invading dust.

Without warning, Miles snatched one of the masks from its hook and pressed it against Dash's muzzle. "Close your eyes Rainbow Dash, else the dust will sting your eyes," he ordered rather firmly, which Rainbow followed. "Can you keep the filter in place for me while I carry you to the building?" The amount of dust and sound of wind in the ship's bay made it hard to speak, so Rainbow simply nodded her head and held it in place with both forehooves.

Miles put his hands underneath where the forelimbs and torso connected and lifted her up. She turned out to be very light for a pony, even with the packs on her sides, and deducted that it was a trait all pegasai had to help fly. Being sure to not ruffle her wings, he flipped her over so her belly was showing and put her in the crook of his arm as if she were a baby. He wasn't sure if Rainbow Dash liked the idea of having to be carried in such a way, but it was better than dying of red lung or being permanently blind.

Mr.Suit and the guards were already leaving the ship, so he sprinted after them with Jacob following close behind. The whistling of the wind didn't help his hearing at all, and it would've been difficult to see where he was going without the flashing strobe lights that lead the way on the landing. Thankfully, he reached the doorway into the building without incident and strode in while security kept it open for them.

Safely inside and away from the dust storm, he kneeled down and rolled Rainbow dash off his arms and back to her hooves. "You alright, Rainbow?" A tinge of concern in his voice.

Rainbow let the mask fall to the floor and took several deep breaths before speaking. "I'm fine." She took another breath before facing Miles, her brow furrowed in anger. "But what the hay was that? I'm not a foal for you to carry in your arms like that!" She jabbed her hoof at his leg since she couldn't reach his chest. Turning her back to him, she continued to follow Mr.suit. However, she paused for a moment before taking another step. "But... thanks for the help."

---

Miles wasn't surprised to find his employer and secretary already waiting for them inside the large lounge. It was obviously meant for enormous parties with the entire company. Everything was polished to a shine. From the black marble floor to the silver chandeliers that gave off a warm yellow glow. Even though a dust storm brewed outside, windows on opposite sides of the room were covered with thick red curtains; finishing off the feeling of homely warmth. Standing beside a long table in the middle of the room was his employer.

"Welcome all of you. Come, have a seat." He motioned with both hands wide. "I'm sure you are all quite famished after your journey. Space-grade edibles can't beat a cooked meal." His gaze switched toward each of his guests before settling on Rainbow Dash. It held a sense of expectation, as if waiting for her to do an amazing trick. She wasn't sure what to make of it, but the staring unsettled her a bit; causing her to look somewhere else. Unfortunately the others didn't notice her moment of unease and were already seated.

Rainbow's stomach grumbled in annoyance to take a seat, so she reluctantly found one next to Miles and Jacob who sat near the middle. Mr.Suit and the others stood attentively to the side, while Cawley took his rightful place at the end of the table. "I've took the liberty of ordering you all a hearty beef stew. The cows are shipped straight from Earth of course. Freshest as it can get." He gave a sly look at Rainbow as she returned it with disgust. "Don't worry, I ordered something special for you. You are the guest of honor after all, and I hope it's to your liking."

As he finished speaking, a pair of silver swing doors burst open. Four humans in butler attire each held a bowl in one hand, balancing it upon their five digits. With not a spill dropped, they placed each bowl in front of the guests. Steam wafted up from each bowl and the smell of spices and cooked meat filled the room. One bowl had been placed without a guest, but the thought of wasted food was brushed away when the Boss explained it was for the Captain when she got here.

"So... where's my food?" Rainbow Dash asked.

The swing doors opened once again, and instead of a single bowl, he brought in an entire tray. When it was placed down in front of Rainbow Dash, she took in the sight before her. A bowl of salad sat in the middle. However, surrounding it were smaller bowls containing every vegetable and fruit imaginable. Rainbow took one of the carrots and took a tentative nibble. Followed by a large bite as it tasted as fresh as if picked directly from the ground.

Inspecting her platter further, she discovered a multitude of dressings as well located close to the bowl of salad. From Italian and balsamic vinaigrettes to thicker dressings such as ranch and Caesar, for a moment she believed to be dining the Princess Celestia. She dared to look at the human sitting at the end of the table, which he returned the gaze with a smile and a nod. She needed no further encouragement.

The Captain had shown up in the middle of the meal and had quickly found her seat. She began eating with gusto before her stew lost any more heat. After everyone had enjoyed their meal, the servants cleaned off the table without a word.

"I would like to thank you all for coming as my guests. You all did an amazing job with bringing Ms. Rainbow Dash here to me, and I couldn't be happier. However, a simple thank you will not suffice, yes?" He motioned with a wave of his hand for a steward who held a thick silver briefcase, which he quickly placed on the table. "Now, in this briefcase," he explained while opening the two latches, " is a credit chit for each of you worth six million credits." True to his word, and settling within the black foam were four small silver squares with thin bronze stripes running down one side. He took two of them out and tossed them to Jacob and Miles before giving the entire briefcase to Captain Doris.

"Now, if there's nothing else. You may leave." He turned his attention to Rainbow dash and motioned for her to follow as he began leaving the room. "This way Ms. Dash, we have much to discuss." He watched each guest get up and leave except one.

"Uh, Sir?" Miles stood up from his chair. "You read my message, correct?"

"Yes, it was quite an inspiring read," he stated nonchalantly with a wave of his hand. "Why?"

"So, is my request granted? Can I stay here with Rainbow Dash?"

Cawley scoffed, but quickly remembered seeing the beginning of a request in his message, but had skipped it while skimming through his message. The answer was as clear as day to him. "No."

Miles' eyes widened. "B-But sir! I still have plenty of questions to ask her for my research."

"Which you can ask during Q&A sessions," he finished in an annoyed fashion. "Right now our friend here must prepare for the coming race that is happening tomorrow. Now, find your way out or security will gladly show you the way."

"I see..." Miles picked up his tablet and turned to leave. He stopped at the doorway they had come from to look at Rainbow Dash one last time. "See ya, Rainbow," he said before closing the door behind him.

Cawley sighed and was about to speak, but Rainbow Dash stood up from her seat; her wings flared out. "Why the hay did you kick them out? They were my friends!"

He couldn't help but scoff again. "Friends that you will have plenty of time to see them again, I assure you. However, we must first get you fitted with a suit for your... unique anatomy." He said while pointing at her hooves.

Rainbow Dash grunted in disapproval, but said nothing else. She didn't like that this human gave her friends the boot. Even though she found the questions from Miles annoying, at least there was somepony to talk to. What confused her more was how the others left after taking their money without even saying goodbye. Was their mission just for the money? Did they not care about being her friend even when they acted so friendly towards her?

She tried to figure out an answer, but the weariness from the trip and the blood rushing to her gut after gouging on the salad kicked in. Right now the idea for a nap sounded pretty good right now.

"Alright, fine," Rainbow grumbled sleepily. "Show me where my room is."

Cawley happily lead her through a doorway and into an elevator. Sixty levels down the elevator later and she found herself staring down a T-section with red carpet. Wood doors lined the hallways with numbers on them. She was quite impressed with how they created the building to make it seem they weren't on a dusty red planet. With Cawley leading the way, he soon stopped in front of a door with the number 64. With a easy turn of the metal handle, he opened it and stood aside for Rainbow to look around.

Rainbow tentatively stepped inside and took in the surroundings. A very large bed draped with a thick blanket that closely resembled the color of her coat sat to her right. The four large white pillows resting against the backboard seemed to beckon for her to sleep, but she held it off for a while longer. Beside both sides of the bed were end tables with a ornate lamp that lit up the room, with an alarm clock on the other one. To her left held a doorway, and upon further inspection found only a empty closet, minus the hangars already in there. The room was longer in depth than width and further back held a dresser and desk. Besides the black device on the desk, both were empty just like the closet.

"If you need anything else, room service is just a phone call away." He pointed towards the black object on the desk. "I have some things to do before tomorrow. Sleep well, Ms. Dash. You're going to need it." With that said, a small beep sounded as the door closed, the automated lock keeping out unwanted guests.

Rainbow Dash threw her saddlebags on the floor and laid down on the bed; a content sigh escaping her mouth as the soft bed and full belly relaxed her. It wasn't cloud soft like the ones in Equestria, but it did its job well enough. Before she slumbered however, she sat up and rummaged through her saddlebags to pull out the mirror Celestia gave her.

Alright, just need to speak somepony's name and they'll appear in the mirror. Looking deeply into the mirror, she spoke her name. "Twilight Sparkle."

The mirror shifted and changed color just as before. However, instead of seeing Celestia's bedchambers, she found herself looking at the back of Twilight's mane. Happy yet confused as to why such an odd angle was chosen, her inner prankster soon had a devious idea. Putting her mouth close to the mirror, she yelled.

"Hey Twilight!" The sound of a quill snapping followed by ink splattering across her writing desk caused Rainbow Dash to fall to the floor and laugh her head off. As she brushed a tear away from laughing so hard, she found Twilight looking through the mirror with a happy expression on her face.

"Rainbow? Thank Celestia you finally used the mirror! How was the trip? Are you alright? Where are you right now?" Her worry heavily outweighing the fact she tried to scare her. As she spouted off each question , her gaze searched the mirror as she soaked in the background image. At the moment, all she saw was the white ceiling since the mirror was on the floor. Rainbow picked up the mirror so her friend could get a better look at the room. "Wow, you sure have a nice place."

"Thanks. The human who asked me to come here in the first place treats me like royalty. Though I get some uncomfortable stares from him." She shivered at the memory.

Twilight tilted her head. "Staring? Well, I'm sure he probably hasn't become accustomed to seeing a pony yet," she offered reasonably.

"Eh, I guess," Rainbow shrugged. "Anyway, my first race starts tomorrow. Just thought I'd drop in and say hi before going to bed."

"Goodnight then. Don't worry, we'll be rooting you on from here!"

"I know..." Rainbow looked away for a moment. While she looked forward to her first race, she still missed her friends and wished they were with her. "I miss you all."

A grin spread on Twilight's face. "We miss you too, Rainbow. Now you better get to bed."

"Yeah, goodnight Twilight."

"Goodnight."

The mirror winked out on its own accord, like it knew they wished to end their conversation. Setting the mirror down on her desk, she crawled into the bed and under the covers. With a click, both lamps turned off, leave Rainbow to a peaceful and dark sleep.

---

BEEP! BEEP BEEP! BE-!

Rainbow Dash slammed her hoof down on the electric alarm clock, cutting off the loud noise attacking her ears. She scratched behind her left ear while grunting angrily at being woken up in such a manner. Though she had to admit it was quite effective.

I don't remember setting an alarm. What time is it anyway?" glancing at the clock, it read "5:23 AM" in bright red. She grunted once more in annoyance before a knock came from her door. "Who's there?"

"Room service." A friendly proper voice spoke that reminded her of Rarity. She threw the blankets off herself and trudged up to the door. When she opened it she found a waitress with a cart beside her. When she spotted Rainbow Dash her eyes widened at bit. "Oh! you must be Rainbow Dash. The pony everyone is taking about."

Rainbow Dash was caught off guard with that statement. "What? How? I just got here last night. I mean yesterday!" She furrowed her brown in annoyance at trying to understand what was day and night on this planet. She clouds of dust when she had arrived didn't help with that prospect.

The waitress giggled. "Gossip spreads quite quickly here, Ms. Dash. You can most likely blame the servants who were with you while dining." Looking down at the pony still standing in the doorway with a raised eyebrow. "Mind if i come in?"

"Oh! sorry." Rainbow Dash stood aside and the waitress brought the cart inside. When it came to a stop, she lifted the covers to reveal her most favorite meal of the day. Upon the cart was a single plate, which to Rainbow's surprise, was heaped upon with food. A small mountain of scrambled eggs mixed with cheese and bell peppers sat as the main centerpiece. Beside those were a heaping pile of steaming hash browns. Last but not least, a biscuit as big as her hoof sat on a smaller plate with small cups filled with different arrays of jellies and butter.

Rainbow was scared she might dehydrate from drooling so much, so she closed her mouth with an audible snap.

"Time for breakfast!" the waitress cheered happily.

---

After the enormous breakfast, the waitress gave Rainbow instructions on how to reach the stadium and prepare for the race tryouts. The building was connected to a tramway which gave riders easy access to and from that destination. As she boarded the tram, she found four others already on it. One human was laying down asleep. Four other humans were looking directly at her. And in the corner was a strange bi-pedal construct that was hunched over with no sign of it moving anytime soon.

"The hell is that? A thinly built man with black hair spoke as he looked down at her. He wore a brown vest with matching pants with several pockets dotting them. His clothes seemed to be made of a rubbery texture. "I think my waitress snuck some crazy shit in my breakfast today cause I'm seeing horses."

"Imbecile," a blonde woman wearing a very form-fitting mustard-yellow suit said in disgust. She stopped leaning against the wall across from him and spoke again, her voice sounded heavily like the ponies from Stalliongrad. "That's because there is a pony with us." She turned her attention towards her. "Do not mind him. He is a few shots from a full bottle of vodka, da?"

"Yeah, sure," Rainbow Dash said uncertainly.

"Holy shit it talks too?"

"My god, will you shut up Jesuit? You're making an ass of yourself." A dark-skinned man spoke. He was laying down on four of the seats with his eyes closed.

"Sorry if I'm the only one who finds a talking pony odd!" He shot back with his arms raised.

The blonde woman rolled her eyes. "Anyway, I am Katerina. You must be Rainbow Dash, da?"

"The one and only!" Dash said proudly.

"Good, cause I'll only say this once," her voice going cold. "Stay out of my way and maybe you'll live to see another day." Rainbow's eyes went wide as Katarine looked down at her with a grim look on her face. She felt frozen in place until she looked away with a small smile, probably happy to see her obvious fear.

The rest of he tram ride turned very awkward, even if no one paid attention to her. Thankfully the tram finally came to a stop and a loud ding echoed in the cabin; letting anyone snoozing know they had arrived. Rainbow Dash stood in the back until everyone else left. When she was about to step off, the hunched over metal object hummed. Within moments eight red eyes lit up as its two arms began lifting itself up. The sound of whirring gears and hydraulics assaulted her ears, which she pinned back as the towering construct stood high above her. when it finally stood at its full height of eight feet, it looked down at Rainbow Dash.

"Mark Four online. Strange creature, move out of the way or be destroyed," it spoke in a rough artificial voice filled with a hint of static.

Rainbow Dash was very happy to oblige as she bolted after the rest of the riders; towards the bottom entrance into the stadium. Even from here she could hear the mess of thousands of others talking from above. She was currently in the prepping area where all the racers grabbed their bikes and generally got themselves psyched for the coming race. The room was enormous enough for her to comfortably fly freely, though she kept her wings folded for now.

She spotted everyone gathering around a single man who stood on top of a crate. His bulging gut and ragged hair hidden under his trucker cap didn't help his outward appearance very much.

"Gather round now, because I'm only gonna say this once." His voice reminded Rainbow Dash of Applejack's accent, only deeper.. "My name is Barry Elson, and I'm the Pit chief of this little race." He gazed at each of them as if searching for something. When he spotted Rainbow Dash he grinned. "That's all I have to say to y'all. Now get ready to race. I need to have a chat with the newbie," pointing a finger at Rainbow. He stepped off the crate as everyone else wandered off to get ready.

"Howdy," he said with a raise of his hat. "Mr. Cawley told me that you might need a special cycle due to your body type, but he never told me you'd be a horse."

"Pony," Rainbow corrected.

"Right..." he rubbed his stubby beard for a moment. "I'm not going to question Mr. Cawley's judgement for bringin' ya here, so I'll get down to the nitty gritty." He pointed towards one of the white bikes nearby. "Since this is only the tryouts y'all aren't touchin' the good stuff until later. Right now these things can barely break mach one on a good day, but it should give us a look on how y'all handle your hyper cycle. You do know how to operate one of these babies, right?"

"Nope!"

Barry muttered something under his breath that, even with her keen sense of hearing, she barely heard. "Alright, we'll start with the basics. The pedals are located near where your feet... er, back hooves should be. Try sitting on one and see how it feels."

Rainbow Dash followed his request and sat down on the cushioned seat. It felt odd with her differently jointed legs, but she managed to stretch them out enough to touch each pedal. "Good, now comes the interesting part." He eyed the glass cover that protected the front of partial top of her head. "there should be a red button below the right handle. Press it."

Looking under the right handle, Rainbow did indeed find said button, and gave it a hard press. Almost immediately the bike came to life as the canopy that looked only like thick glass soon became a swarm of information. On the top-left was her shields, which a blue bar was slowly filling up. The tip-right was empty, but the lettering "weapons energy" showed in the small box. There was also things like what her position was in the race, how fast her last lap and current lap is, and how many there are left. Below that was the bike's speed by MPH.

"What's with the symbols on the top of the screen?" Rainbow pointed out with a hoof.

"Nothing for you to worry about yet. This race is strictly towards how good you are at outpacing the others. Not blowin them to smithereens." He eyes her forehoof for a second. "think you can get a good grip on the steering bar?" Rainbow Dash had her hoof resting on both bars and nodded her head.

However, Barry remained skeptical. "I'm going to trust that you do have a good grip, seeing that you're only resting your hoof on it. In the mean time..." He turned around towards a nearby double-door locker and pulled out a plain red track suit and grey helmet. "Be glad you have friends in high places because these were made just this morning." He shook his head as a smile spread on his lips. "Technology. Gotta love it."

Rainbow Dash snatched the suit and helmet out of the air when he tossed it to her. The cloth was very heavy and had dozens of pockets which didn't seem to serve any use besides for looks. Shrugging, she pulled down the zipper to put it on and noticed Barry look away while she did so. "Something wrong?"

"No, just giving you some privacy while you dress."

"But... I wasn't wearing anything in the first place." She gave up when he shrugged with his back stilled turned.

Humans are weird.

Finally managing to pull her back legs into the suit, she quickly put her forelegs in and zipped it back up. "I'm done, you can stop being weird now." She found the suit to hug her body tightly as if made specifically for her. Although she cringed in pain since they forgot to put a hole for her tail, leaving her to bunch it together down her left leg.

"That's, uh, great. You still have several minutes before the race starts, so why don't you test the bike out. Very very gently please."

"Yeah, no problem." Rainbow Dash put on her helmet and found, even with it being fully concealed with metal, it kept her horizontal vision. However, she couldn't see most of the ceiling and the space between her seat and the handles was hidden as well. Even worse, her ears were pressed down against the top of the helmet, making it hard to hear.

She pressed lightly on the acceleration pedal and soon regretted it as the bike rumbled with life and shot off as if she slammed down on it. She quickly pressed on the break and turned to the side, causing the bike to slide perpendicular to the wall and hit it tire-first. Afterwards, she lost her balance and it tip over, with her underneath it.

Barry laughed as he walked over to where she was pinned and brought the bike to settle back on its wheels. "Well, it was better than several rookies last year. You seem to have a cool head and quick mind with how you saved yourself like that. I'd say you might have a chance."

"Hehe, thanks," Rainbow responded while brushing herself off. As she climbed back on he bike to continue, a loud voice came from a nearby speaker.

"Welcome race fans to Arabian ridge, where the most popular Motorsport the universe has ever seen begins! The riders are psyched, their engines are burning hot, and they're ready to rock. With more than over one hundred million viewers from every known galaxy watching, there's no pressure with these competitors."

"If you say so Bill," another voice spoke up with a chuckle. "Anyway, today will be the tryouts to see who will get first pick with their sponsors. Each one has been hand-picked by the XGRA for their skill, speed, and ruthlessness on the race track. and let me just say, we have a special rider here today who knows the meaning of speed!"

"You got that right! a pony who can break sonic speeds with her wings is one thing, but can she do it under our rules? We're about to find out soon enough. Personally, I'm rooting for Mark Four. He's one mean son of a-"

"Alright! the other announcer interrupted before he finished his colorful comment. It looks like the race is about to start. Riders, come on up!"

"That's your cue, Rainbow," Barry whispered. "Good luck."

"Thanks," Rainbow simply responded before very carefully moving her bike towards where the other riders were. All of them had the same plain white bikes and were inside the eight white rectangles placed evenly along the floor. When she stopped her bike behind hers, which was all the way in last place, a loud rumble came from below.

The floor itself began moving upwards as the ceiling parted open to show the tinged red sky. Even with the helmet and her ears folded rather uncomfortably, she could hear the crowd roaring with excitement to her right. The stadium was enormous with its double-tiered seats. An entire sea of humans were in the rows, shouting out and cheering to the riders.

Her attention was switched when she noticed several black orbs float through the air and over the race track. One even stopped in front of Rainbow Dash as its camera-fitted eyes looking at her with curiosity.. In response, she gave a small wave at it, which only caused it to zip away.

Before she could turn her head to look at where it floated off to, two other things floated over the racers; spaced out so all of them could see the screens they held. A electronic female voice entered her helmet as a countdown started.

Three...

Rainbow Dash tense up as she gripped the handlebars in a vice. She still couldn't believe she was here with so many humans watching. the thought of embarrassing herself in front of everyone was shoved toward the back of her mind. She couldn't risk being distracted.

Two...

Her eyes dilated while looking at the track before her. In the far distance she saw terrifying drops off cliffs and enormous loops that would put a roller coaster to shame. She could feel her stomach turn queasy just from staring at them.

One...

Her heart hammered in her chest as the race would started in less than a second. This was it. Her rise or fall to glory would begin on this day. No turning back. No regrets.

RACE!

Rainbow Dash slammed on the accelerator and her bike responded in kind. She quickly sped past two of the bikes triumphantly, but they managed to keep pace behind her. They soon came across the first landmark of the track as it split into two and weaved together once before leading off in two different directions. The three bikes in the lead took towards the left track while Rainbow and the rest followed the right.

However, the weaving track proved more troublesome than thought as the bikers crashed their bikes into each other; their shields glowing from the impacts. When the riders managed to reach the break-off points, there were five riders with Rainbow Dash and two on the other side.

This isn't going to work How am I supposed to gain the lead if all the bikes are the same speed? I need a boost of speed somehow.

Soon as she thought that, her hyper cycle touched a line of glowing purple arrows on the ground and her bike rocketed forward; passing another rider. He eyes widened in realization afterwards, and saw it as her only way to gain the upper-hand in this race. As the track continued, she searched for every arrow she could find to go faster. However, what she saw next after a wide side-ways turn made her face go pale.

A large corkscrew lined with those purple arrows was ahead of her, followed by a drop straight down towards the planet. Already the other four bikes were circling through the corkscrew. Steeling her stomach, she rocketed towards the stomach-churning turn as her bike touched the first row of arrows. Her cycle started to erratically throw itself around as the g-forces pressed down against the bike. She feared that it would fly off the track, but by some form of luck, she only came out with only half her shields missing.

Sighing in relief, she felt the sense of vertigo as she plummeted down the straight downward slope; screaming at the top of her lungs.

"Woohoo!"

---

"She's doing rather well, don't you think?" Mr. Cawley said as eight others and himself watched the race in a luxurious suite. A screen fit from floor to ceiling gave a clear view of Rainbow Dash's bike as she weaved through red rock; the track changing from black asphalt to direct contact of Mars' surface. She was already in second place and was steadily gaining on finishing first.

Around him were the eight teams who help sponsor the races. Each other them standing in relaxation with drinks in their hands. He considered them his equals, due to the situation they were all in. While he relied on their funding to keep the race afloat, they trusted him to share their ads throughout the race. From billboards to the racer girls who pose with the winners. All of it was for the money.

"She's good. I'll give her that, but I've never seen anybody have so much fun during a race. She must not take this very seriously." A middle-aged man with blonde hair responded. A VIP pass around his neck showed he was a part of the team 'Fobos'.

"I assure all of you she only loves and respects this race just as both you and I enjoy money. Her confidence and skill will prove invaluable for her in the future." The act he was pulling was only a ruse to find the highest buyer for Rainbow Dash. If they saw her as the best in the race, they would fight each other over getting her to join their team. The amount of money they would receive from the products they sold would skyrocket them to the top.

"We shall see, Mr. Cawley." He said cautiously as he watched the race. "We shall see."

---

Rainbow Dash had a large grin on her face as she enjoyed every second of the race. Each high-g inducing movement got her blood pumping and gave her a high she only felt after performing a sonic rainboom. Sadly she hasn't broke that barrier yet, but the promise for faster bikes meant that she would eventually.

By now she was at the last stretch of track for the second time. Everyone else had been left in the dust save for one racer who refused to give up ever since the first lap was finished. It was the same woman that had warned her to stay out of her way, but with the closing prospect of winning first place, she didn't care.

She abused the poor acceleration pedal once more as the track abruptly ended into a ramp. She sailed through the air for five seconds before roughly landing on the mars' surface; kicking up dust. As the dust cleared and her bike back in control, she found Katerina next to her and several inches behind from being in first place. The straight-way proved that Rainbow Dash would be the victor and the crowd clearly showed it with more boisterous cheers for the newcomer.

"Little pony," The sound of Katerina's voice came through her helmet, her face appearing on the screen ahead of her. "I give you one last chance to back out, else you will make a formidable enemy this day. What say you?"

Rainbow Dash frowned. "No can do. I came her to win and that's exactly what I'm going to do!" With that said, she crossed the finish line and the crowd burst into an uproar that was somehow louder than the last. As Rainbow dash stopped her bike to the side and took her helmet off, she pumped her hoof in the air. The action only caused the audience to raise their cheering from loud to almost ear-bursting.

That was what she wanted all along, and she finally got a taste of what the XGRA had to offer. Sure the dangers were high, but with great risk comes great reward, and she was ready for anything to get more fame. As she continued to wave to the growing fans, Katerina's voice crackled once more in her helmet.

"You made a dangerous enemy, Rainbow Dash. I look forward to destroying you... next time we meet."

Comments

[OddDreams]

MInd = Blown.

[Brotato]

1731300 Just wait until she starts doing the races with weapons.

[OddDreams]

1731339

Also, you made Jesuit a dick. Not sure if I like that or not, but it DOES fit, since as him I always killed EVERYONE with Deathstrike or lapped them with Rail Accelerator spam XD

Also, Dash better get a Rainbow Cannon. Seriously. If you give her Lightning or Missiles I will be mad >.>