lap of honor

by AppleLauda99942

lap record attempt

on a fateful day in October, Apple Lauda and Danger Dean meet each other at the Nordschleife again for their tiebreaker battle. Danger did practice quite a lot in the past and has significantlly improved. He took his Nordschleife lap times below the 6:30 minute barrier. That makes Apple Lauda worried because he knows that a powerful opponent has arrived.

"I studied your driving style and the car you use. So I thought, how about we race with equal material" Danger explains.
"well sure but I have upgraded myself as well" the Nürburgring God says. "But to be honest... what did I ever do for the Princess to honor her?"
"what do you mean?" Danger asks curiously. "You did already so much for her and I know it's kinda your duty because the commands from above tell you to do so."
"I know Danger... but I can't get it off my shoulders... you know what... I'm going to try to break 6:28 today..." Apple Lauda says with a sigh and guilty expression on his face.
"don't do it Juggernaut, you are going to hurt yourself or even worse" Danger says.
"Celestia is a royal pony and we both know that... I feel like that it's my duty:.." Apple Lauda explains.
"are you crazy?! dude, if you do a mistake, you might be dead!!!" Danger warns.

But Apple Lauda has another plans. He wants to get over with this fast so he can get rid of the weight that are on his shoulders. Apple Lauda and Danger Dean get into their GT3 cars. Both drive a Dodge Viper GT3-R in the hope of Danger beating Apple Lauda once and for all.

The lights go green and Danger gets the better start off the line but Apple Lauda is right on his tail. At Hatzenbach, Apple Lauda backs off because he gave himself the "never overtake in Hatzenbach" rule but on their way to Schwedenkreuz, Apple Lauda goes for the pass and drives into the distance.

But Danger can keep up with him. Apple Lauda gets in panic as he realizes that he can't get rid of the Viper in his mirror.

"UGH!!! WHY CAN'T I GET RID OF HIM?!!?!?" Apple Lauda asks himself in fear.

Twilight smirks. She knew that she can help Danger out. And Starlight, well... she did watch him and give him tips about how to keep up with the Nürburgring God.

"I must say that was a good training program you gave me there girls" Danger says through the radio. Apple Lauda is furious.

"YOU GIRLS HELPED HIM?!" Apple Lauda yells in disbelief. Twilight and Starlight only can laugh.

"awww, is somepony scared?" Twilight says teasingly. Starlight speaks up.
"look who's in your mirror Juggernaut!!!!! oh you're a good boy are you, yes you are, just keep looking into your mirror" Starlight teases.

But suddenly, something happens... Apple Lauda somehow ascends into a higher level, getting ahead of Danger.
"I WON'T LET YOU GET AWAY!!!!" Danger yells.
"catch me if you can hahaha" Apple Lauda responds.

and suddenly, Apple Lauda is gone... he vanished into the Eifel Mountains.

"WHAT IS HAPPENING GIRLS?!" Danger asks furiously. Twilight is looking for a explaination.
"I don't know why he ascended again. I believe that the Eifel Gods had stepped in there" Twilight explains.
Danger gets annoyed. "ugh... not again the Eifel Gods..." the British Speedfreak says.
"keep pushing, you can still match his pace!!!" Starlight cheers. But Apple Lauda is already on his way back to the start/finish line.

Arriving on the Döttinger Höhe, Apple Lauda has pulled a lead of 4 seconds over Danger Dean. Apple Lauda knows, if he misses the Hohenrain or spins in T13, Danger will win.
"There's no way I will win this girls!!!" Danger says. "it's over... there's no way I can win this unless a miracle happens"

but that miracle doesn't happen. Apple Lauda crosses the finish line in 6:28.140 minutes, setting a new lap record in the process. This doesn't get unnoticed. Celestia makes her way over to the Nürburgring to congratulate Apple Lauda to his new lap record. Danger Dean crosses the finish line 2.5 seconds later than Apple Lauda thanks to a better Galgenkopf exit than him.

"that was tight!!!" Apple Lauda shouts. "well done Danger... that was a real challenge there"
"thanks, but seriously, how on earth are you so fast?!?!?!" Danger asks.
"I can't explain it either... whenever I have an opponent in my mirror, something happens and suddenly, I'm a level higher." Apple Lauda answers. "But still, I didn't break 6:28... I have to go again in a few hours..."

"does it even matter?" Starlight says. "I mean you did that for Celestia... you have every record you can have on the Ring. You can retire now, how about we do something together instead?"

"Starlight is right, screw 6:27 and let's hang out, playing some games, baking cookies, making stuff..." Twilight tries to convince him.

"Sorry girls, but I can't... I can't retire now... I must break 6:28... I'm so close to breaking it... I can't stop, not now..." Apple Lauda responds.

In the evening, Apple Lauda goes through his mind again, remembering the words of Twilight and Starlight. But he cannot stop at this point. He wants to keep going, but he knows, one mistake and he could be dead.

After a short dinner, Apple Lauda goes through his checklist one final time before he goes to sleep.

The next day, Apple Lauda wakes up and gets his breakfast. His choice is pao de queijo which translates to brazilian cheese rolls. Then, he walks over to the garage, where his team is already waiting for him. After final preparations, the call has been made. Apple Lauda gets into his Dodge Viper GT3-R and transforms. His mane and tail become red. He only has one try because he drains his power very quickly. It will last only for half an hour to an hour. He will not know when the transformation will end.

Author's Note:

I actually ate pao de queijo by myself and it was very delicious.