//------------------------------// // Third Leg (Part 1) // Story: The World Race // by TheIronPone035 //------------------------------// It was a scorcher out today, with the sun showing no mercy on the set of stationary vehicles in the desert. Next to them was a large grey cube, its air conditioning being the only thing that kept the drivers comfortable and able to sleep through the night. Inside this complex's control room was Twilight Sparkle, her lavender fingers rapidly flipping switches which activated a handful of monitors. She typed in a code into a computer and let the system boot up. She looked over at Spike, who was sitting in his robotic chair, thinking to himself. "Alright Spike, start the race." Twilight instructed. Spike moved his chair over to a panel and hit a red button, activating the starting lights. In the very front of the pack of vehicles, Road Runner and Crazy 8s shook side by side with each other. Applejack gripped the wheel of Road Runner tightly, focusing on the freshly activated red light. Behind Road Runner, Sling Shot rumbled slightly as Rarity rev'd the engine. She was determined to win this time, whether or not it was just another leg or the true finish line of the race. She wasn't the only one with this mindset either. Near the back, Spitfire glanced over at the car next to her, only to be greeted by a . She just rolled her eyes and grabbed the steering wheel. The hovering street light blinked yellow, causing the drivers to hover their hands over their car's clutches. Rainbow Dash held the wheel tightly, watching the light. Behind her, Starlight flipped a switch on the console, causing a radio to activate. The street light stayed yellow a little longer, before flashing green. The area was soon filled with the noise of several cars taking off, Road Runner and Crazy 8 taking the lead. Applejack looked over at Crazy 8, before hitting the Nitrox 2 button. Road Runner quickly shot up on two wheels, leaving a fiery trail behind it. Crazy 8 did the same, quickly speeding up until it was side by side with Road Runner. The other cars also had their Nitrox buttons pressed, causing each car to shoot forward from the burst of speed. It didn't take long before the group of cars reached the portal, which gladly opened up with a burst of purple light. Road Runner and Crazy 8 drove through first, followed by the rest of the drivers. Once every driver had made it, the portal shut its self, vanishing into thin air. Applejack blinked away the blinding light that had entered her vision from the portal, only to open wider with shock. The portal had opened up to a transparent track that looped around several white futuristic buildings. But the big factor was the fact that the whole place was above the clouds, meaning that the whole track was high in the sky. Applejack didn't have much time to look around at the scenery because Crazy 8 sped past her, snatching first place. Applejack hit the gas, following the car in hot pursuit. Behind her, Colgate looked out in awe. A massive billboard flickered to life, displaying parts of the track with the cars on it. "Now this is a cloud room!" Colgate exclaimed mainly to herself. She was a dentist who would often work in rooms with cloud wallpaper for little kids. "Cloud track or not, it's a track. Now get out of the way." Sunset Shimmer spat, twisting the wheel to the left. She hit the gas, accelerating Muscle Tone past Colgate's Power Pistons car. She then hit the Nitrox, boosting her car forward towards the leaders. However, her eyes drifted over to what appeared to be a jump. "Shortcut." Sunset said under her breath, turning the wheel to the left. Muscle Tone drove off the blue ramp and into the air. It broke through a few clouds before landing on another track. Pinkie Pie glanced over at Spine Buster, the car trying to pass her from the inside. She gave Scootaloo, a wink and a thumbs up, before shifting up, staying ahead of Spine Buster. Scootaloo furrowed her brow, seeing her attempt of passing being blocked. However, she had more tricks up her sleeve. She spotted what looked like another path floating behind a ramp. With a quick turn of the wheel, Spine Buster was on course for the ramp, which it flew off of and onto the other track. Rarity looked to her left at a car she was passing, before back to the track. Suddenly, the track shot to the left, causing the cars to seem like they were driving on a wall. Rarity shifted up, not letting go of the gas. She gripped the wheel tightly, watching the track ahead of her for another sharp turn. The group of cars behind Sling Shot tried to get passed it, but ended up falling back, worried about falling off the track. But once the track straightened out again, their drivers hit the gas hard. But Rarity was expecting that, so she hit the Nitrox 2 which launched her car forward, staying ahead of the others. One of the drivers behind Sling Shot, was Spitfire, who frowned as the car's shape got smaller and smaller. She looked back in her car's rear view mirror to see other cars catching up to her. "Not today!" Spitfire stated to herself, hitting the Nitrox 2 button which launched her car forwards as well. A few other drivers were about to do the same, but quickly noticed a turn up ahead so they held off, sticking with a more controlled speed. But Spitfire didn't need to go slower to control her car. Once she had reached the turn, she twisted the wheel to the left, causing 1/4th Mile Coupe to drift slightly in the turn. 1/4th Mile Coupe nearly flew off the side, but Spitfire kept the car right on the end. Right as the turn went back to a straight away, Spitfire slammed her foot on the gas. 1/4th Mile Coupe shot from the turn and down the straight away, its speed still above 120 mph. Soarin watched in awe at the stunt Spitfire had just done, before shifting up in an attempt to catch up. However, he was still on the turn, so the sudden increase in speed nearly caused his car to fly off the edge. He quickly adjusted the wheel and slowed down, correcting his mistake. But the mess up had already done the damage. Several other cars sped right past him, leaving him in the dust. With a grunt of anger, he hit the wheel, before accelerating back up to speed.