Run That Race

by The Unseen

Welcome to RaceWorld Academy

1ST NOVEMBER 2023

------ROAD AMERICA, WISCONSIN------

It was 10:00am here in Wisconsin, which meant it was 9:00am back in Canterlot City. Sunset was sitting in the back of the taxi that had brought here to Road America. This was the track where Thunderbolt Motorsports was doing their testing, as the closest track to Canterlot City was three hours from the city, and mainly catered to go-karts, Formula 4 cars, and the occasional track day by supercar owners. Thunderbolt had paid for a ticket to Appleton Airport, which necessitated a layover, which had annoyed Sunset.

From the airport, she had taken a taxi to Road America, which had taken more than an hour to reach there. This track had hosted races from the NASCAR Cup Series till 2022, but still hosted NASCAR Xfinity races. It also was known for hosting races from IndyCar and IMSA SportsCar Championship. Sunset had raced this track a few times in RaceWorld, as she wanted to see one of the few tracks where NASCAR cars could turn right, so she was familiar with some of the track.

As Sunset got out of the taxi, and paid the driver, she noticed a sign saying, 'RaceWorld Academy Candidates', with an arrow marking the direction of where to go. Originally, Sunset was a little annoyed that she would be missing school due to this, but CHS had temporarily closed down after Snips and Snails had snuck in on Thanksgiving and planted stink bombs around the place to attempt to close the school for some time, enough that it smelled like a sewage treatment plant.

On top of that, to celebrate Thanksgiving, someone had lit fireworks, and one had gone haywire and caused a small fire. So because of that, CHS was closed for two weeks, while the smell was removed, and the fire damage was fixed. When Sunset's friends had heard that she had got into RaceWorld Academy, they were actually happy that one of them would get the chance to become famous on the global stage, and had felt that it was the perfect opportunity for Sunset to fulfil her dream of becoming a racing driver. Sunset walked over towards the sign, and saw a large building in front of her. It had the logos of RaceWorld and Thunderbolt Motorsports on it. Sunset walked in, rolling her suitcase with her.

There, she noticed a few other people there, mostly people like her, ranging from the ages of 16 to 20. One of them asked her, "You got into RaceWorld Academy as well?"

"Yep, placed 1st in my Eliminator." said Sunset.

"Where you from?" asked another.

"Canterlot City." replied Sunset.

"Oh, cool! I'm from the UK!" replied one of the guys. There were a decent number of girls in this contest. Quite a few of them seemed to come from other countries. As the other RaceWorld Academy candidates poured in, there were quite a few of them from other countries, including India, Ukraine, Japan, and Canada. Soon, all twenty of them were assembled. The youngest of them was just 14, and the oldest was 29.

That was when Sunset heard a familiar voice. It was coming from the one of the guys. This fellow was well-built, around 18 or 19. He had green skin, and reddish hair. Sunset went up to him and tapped his shoulder.

"Excuse me, isn't your online game ID Thrustmaster?" Sunset asked him.

"Huh, I thought I recognised your voice, Speed Queen." said the 19 year old, as he turned around, smirking.

"Well, if it isn't you, Thrustmaster. So, what's your real name?" asked Sunset.

"Nah, you tell me yours first." replied Thrustmaster, still smiling.

"No, you first! It's being a gentleman, you know!" said Sunset, smirking.

"Fine! My real name's Powerslide. I got into the world of simracing, and now, I'm here, with a chance to become a real racing driver." said Powerslide.

"All right! My real name's Sunset Shimmer, and I'm just a car girl, I guess. Used to be a school bully, now one of the well-most people there, in a good way!" said Sunset.

"Just wondering, do you own a car IRL?" asked Powerslide.

"Yeah, I own a Toyota GT86, in red colour. It's got Konig Decagram rims, a cold air filter, and a modified exhaust."

"That's cool! I have a friend who has, or rather had, a GT86. It got totalled in a wreck, but it was a pretty cool car." said Powerslide, rather sadly. "Currently, I drive a BMW 128i, in white colour, that I picked for cheap."

"Oh, wow! I really want a German car one day!" said Sunset.

"Well, we'll get to drive them here, and maybe race them, if we're lucky enough!" said an excited Powerslide. That was when another trainee came in. This one was familiar to Sunset. She had fought this trainee. It was Sonata Dusk. Sunset was extremely surprised to see Sonata and here, and vice versa. The second they saw each other, it led to a confrontation.

"What are YOU doing here?" asked Sunset.

"I suppose I could ask the same to you." said Sonata.

"Well, I'm here to attend RaceWorld Academy." said Sunset.

"Yeah, everyone here is, Shimmer! You're not the only girl who's gotten into the world of cars and racing!"

"When did YOU get into cars?"

"Well, after you caused use to lose the Battle of the Bands and our powers, we had to go around looking for jobs, since we couldn't sing for money anymore. I got a job at a tuner, and I didn't really understand at first why people would want to make their cars more dangerous to drive, until my boss decided to show me, by taking me for a few laps in his 1,000 horsepower GT-R, and that's when I got my love for cars! So, I got into simracing so I could drive on iconic tracks and be a racing driver without being one! I don't have money to compete, for Faust's sake!"

"Well, same story here, except that I got into cars and racing after my ex-boyfriend took me to a car race. I'm surprised that you're so into cars. When we met in the Battle of Bands, I don't think you could tell the difference between an exhaust pipe and a sewage pipe."

"If that was meant to be an insult, it wasn't a great one. Anyways, let's see how you feel when I defeat YOU for once." said Sonata, smirking, as she went off to join her fellow trainees, who were wondering what was the beef between Sunset and Sonata.

As they all got to know each other, they all wondered where they would be led, when Soaring Surfer, the head of Thunderbolt Motorsports came in.

"Hello, everyone! Welcome to RaceWorld Academy! The twenty of you, hailing from 12 different countries, have won the Eliminator trials, and now, you're going to learn how to race real cars! It's going to be your job out there to prove yourselves that you belong on a real racetrack, that gaming is useful after all, that you can take racing away from the rich kids, who can buy it all! The winner here, gets a seat on Thunderbolt Motorsports, and a place in racing history. I'll give you a quick tour of the place, and then, we'll meet your teacher here. He'll show you how to race a car in real life." said Surfer, as he motioned for the trainees to follow him.

As they walked through the facility, the first stop was a room full of bunk beds. Enough to hold exactly twenty people, to be precise. "This, trainees, is where you'll live while you're here. There is a common room with a TV here, and each bed has a charging port next to it, for your phones. There is Internet, but as long as you're here, you cannot post on social media at all. Anyone who posts on social media will be disqualified from RaceWorld Academy and sent home. Got it?" asked Surfer.

All of them nodded at that. In fact, a few people took out their phones and disabled their social media accounts, to prove that they were serious about this. "Drop off your bags here, and we'll continue." said Surfer. Everybody dropped off their bags, some only after Surfer assured them none of the cleaning crew would steal their belongings. The tour then continued. The next room was the cafeteria, where they could get dishes personalised to their tastes, diets, and religious sentiments. After that was the simulator room, which they would use to practice their driving skills off-track.

Finally, it was time to meet their teacher. He was waiting on the track. As they reached the track, they noticed quite a total of five brand-new Porsche 911 GT3s, the 992 generation, of course. The cars were all parked on the track, for a promotional shoot. All were painted different colours: one shark blue, one Guards red, one jet black, one white, and one racing yellow. These would be the cars they would train on. It would be too risky to train on the actual race cars, so they were using the road cars instead.

As they arrived at the pits, they noticed a man waiting for them. Some of the racing fans in the crowd recognised him as Comet Flash, a former Formula 1 driver. Powerslide mentioned to Sunset, "Comet Flash was quite the driver back in the day. He even won a World Championship, until his sudden retirement back in 2015. His career was also going quite well when he retired."

"What? Why did he retire at the peak of his career?" asked Sunset.

"No one really knows why he retired. He was involved in a fatal crash before his retirement, where a spectator was killed. Three months after that crash, he quit racing. No one knows the reason behind his retirement." replied Powerslide.

"I wonder if it had anything to do with that crash..." said Sunset, as they all assembled in front of Comet Flash, who was about to introduce himself.

"All right, everyone. My name's Comet Flash. I'm your teacher here, I guess. All these people at Thunderbolt Motorsports really want to prove that you can do the impossible. I'm here to prove that you can't. Here's the thing. This ain't a game. Racing, it takes strength, tremendous will, intelligence, and sensitivity. There are only a handful of people on this planet who have what it takes to do something like this." Flash paused, and continued his talk.

"In a real racecar, the G-forces will be TWICE, what an astronaut feels on liftoff. Under these conditions, you'll have to make split-second decisions that could cost you or life. Or worse... you could kill someone else. It's emotionally and physically demanding, and if you feel that you can't handle it, pack up and go home. There's no shame in that at all, because, if you stay, I'll push y'all more harder than you've ever been pushed before. Because I'm going to do everything to prove that YOU don't have what it takes, because just by looking at you, I can tell you don't." said Flash, finishing his talk, which did not please Surfer.

"Nice pep talk, Flash. I think they got the point." said Surfer, talking to Flash as he came back towards the crew. Surfer then addressed the trainees. "Today, training will begin from 2:00pm. Tomorrow onwards, your training begins from 7:00am. Now, you're gonna head to the locker room. You'll be fitted for your racing suits and helmets there, and those will be your uniforms here."

It was now 12:30pm. All of the trainees nodded, and began to walk back towards the main building. This was not going to be easy, they had already realised. Just as they were going to get fitted for their racing suits, Comet Flash showed up. "Alright, I want to know something. Majority of you are at least 16, right?" Most of the trainees, including Sunset, nodded at that. "Okay, so, how many of you have driven a car in real life?" asked Flash.

Most of the trainees, except for the three of them who were under the age of 16, and a person who hadn't gotten his license yet, raised their hands at that. "Okay, so the four of you, you're getting real driving lessons from tomorrow onwards. Rest of you, driving a racecar is not like driving a BRZ or RAV4 or any other car. It's a different thing altogether, so, get ready to enjoy this." said Flash, as he left the room. "Oh, and by the way, I am the one who chooses who gets eliminated." said Flash, popping back in quickly with a smile, and then leaving again.

The younger fellows were extremely excited, as they had heard that many racers begun their journeys from young ages, so they felt like this would make them real racers, if they were able to get through this. However, most of the trainees were already nervous, as Flash had mentioned that he chose who got eliminated, so if they slipped up even once, they could get sent home. The fitting for the racing suits and helmets finished, and soon, the trainees were getting ready for their first lesson. They were all dressed in their new racing suits, which hadn't taken too long to prepare, while the helmets had to be custom-made, so those would take sometime to get here.

Sunset and Powerslide were chatting about their personal lives, happy to meet up in real life for the first time, after talking to each other on RaceWorld for so long. They were just chatting, when Comet Flash came in. "Alright, we're heading to the simulators today. You're gonna compete in an exercise so we can see whose gaming skills translate best to driving a real car. You're gonna play all together on one track, with no reset and full realistic conditions, including damage, enabled." said Comet Flash.

"Mr. Flash, isn't that a not-so-good idea, considering that if we mess up, we can't really show you our skills?" asked one of the other trainees.

"Well, that's the problem you'll have to deal with. That's the main difference between racing in a video game and racing in real life. If you mess up in the game, you can reset! If you mess up out there... you could die." said Flash. "Hence, when we do sessions on the simulator, you're playing with reset disabled, and realistic damage."

"Got it, Mr. Flash." replied the trainee.

"Okay, get on the simulators before I get too old!" shouted Flash, as all of the trainees ran onto the simulators, and turned them on. They all selected the 911 GT3 as their car, and joined one race, which would be on Road America. All of them spawned into the lobby, and Flash began walking behind their seats, to see how well they could drive virtually. This race would last only 30 laps, less than half the length of a real race, which would be around 60 to 80 laps. Sunset would be starting in 8th, while Powerslide would be starting in 15th, and Sonata would be starting in 1st.

At exactly 1:00pm, The race started, and all 20 virtual cars began speeding down the recreation of Road America. The roar of flat-6 engines filled the speakers, as the trainees zoomed down Road America Straight, speeding past 100 miles per hour. They began slowing down a little for Turn 1, and all of them zoomed through it. "Good, looks like you can actually do something!" said Flash.

The first few laps were uneventful. During these few laps, Powerslide was able to make his way from 15th to 11th place, and Sunset was able to make it to 6th place. However, on the 6th lap, one of the other trainees, a South American, braked too late and hard on Turn 5, causing him to lock up and go off the track. Flash, who saw this, said, "All right, you're going home. You're eliminated." The South American furiously banged his setup, feeling like an idiot for making such a stupid mistake, that had made him the first one to get eliminated.

As the race continued, in lap 10, Susnet managed to make a pass, moving from 6th to 5th place. The top 10 drivers were really putting up a fight, trying to defend their own positions, and overtake at the same time. This was their way to prove to Comet Flash that they could actually do something.

However, on lap 12, it was getting worse. This race had been set in rainy conditions, for an extra challenge. On the main straight, doing high speeds, and with tire wear enabled, pretty much every trainee was hydroplaning, causing a few skids. Most of them were able to regain control, but one of the trainees spun out fully, and his car slammed into the wall separating the main track from the pit lane. "Well, you're eliminated, pack up and head home!" said Flash. This trainee took it more lightly, and didn't really get as mad as the previous guy who had been eliminated. He just walked off in silence to get his things.

As the race continued, the slippery track and the wearing-out tires made things more difficult for the drivers, who were skidding quite often. On the Carousel corner, the slippery track caused Sunset to skilfully drift the whole way through. "What, do you get extra points in the game for drifting?" asked Flash, who had watched her drift the whole thing, with a bit of a twinkle in his eye that no one noticed.

Soon, at around lap 16, everyone was coming to pit for fresh tires, except for a trainee who felt his current tires would last a little longer, and one trainee who was a bit of a daredevil. Most of the trainees who pitted, including Sunset, went for full wet tires, while some went for intermediate tires. Most of them had very good pit stops, and all of them were back out on the track within a few minutes. Sunset had dropped back to 6th place from the pit stop, but she was determined to get a podium, or even a win.

At around lap 21, the guy who had run on his old tires for a little longer finally pitted, after he spun on his previous lap, but recovered, dropping him down from 3rd to 7th place. The daredevil, on the other hand, was still running his old tires, which would not be a good idea, since the rain in the game had been set to be a little more intense now. Sunset had a feeling there was going to be an accident involving him soon. Even Flash had said, "Hey, you do realise those worn-out tires can't handle your daredevil personality forever?"

He had just replied with an 'uh-huh', as if he wasn't even listening to Flash. On the very next lap, he spun the car and dropped from 5th to 13th place. He recovered, but not before he got an earful from Flash. "You're eliminated! I told you those tires wouldn't handle well much any longer! You're going home!" He rather silently got up from his setup, and went to go get his stuff.

The rest of the race progressed uneventfully, except for an amazing overtake Sunset made, where she overtook both the guys in 3rd and 4th, which put Sunset in 3rd. However, the trainees in 1st and 2nd were putting up quite the fight. They were not going to let her pass, that was for sure, as they entered the final lap. Sonata had somehow maintained her position in 1st since the beginning of the race, and she had not been overtaken even once. In fact, when the 2nd place guy attempted to overtake Sonata, she had violently slammed the door on him, almost causing him to spin out.

Sunset knew that beating Sonata would not be easy, considering the way Sonata was driving. The wet conditions still hadn't let up, and that was annoying, but it wasn't too much of a disadvantage for the remaining 17 trainees. As they sped through the Kettle Bottoms, Sunset inched towards the 2nd placer, and as they slowed down for Canada Corner, dive bombed from the inside, pushing him towards the outside, and overtaking him. Now, only Sonata was ahead of Sunset. As they sped through the Thunder Valley corner, Sunset was basically on Sonata's rear bumper, but everytime Sunset attempted to overtake Sonata, Sonata kept blocking her. She was not giving up the win.

It was now 2:10pm. As the cars entered the final turn and the main straight, Sunset hit the gas, and so did Sonata, as they came out of the turn side-by-side. As the two virtual Porsches sped towards the finish line, they were at the same speed, both next to each other. Flash was intently watching them from behind, wondering who would win, or if it would be a tie. However, Sonata managed to nose ahead a little, and her car passed over the finish line first. As the game read that Sonata had won, while Sunset had come second. Sonata give Sunset a smug smirk at that. As the remaining drivers passed over the finish line, Flash spoke up.

"Okay! That's the end of today's simulator session. Tomorrow, cupcakes, we'll do some real-life exercising, as physical fitness is paramount to be a racer. When was the last time any of you moved your legs? To grab a chips and soda from your fridge during all-night gaming session? I'll tell you right now, again, if any of you can't handle the physical demands, there's no shame in heading home. Back to your rooms for now. We start real-life training tomorrow." said Flash, walking off.

At that sentence, some of the trainees felt a little offended. Most people saw gamers as people who stayed indoors all the time, who rarely touched grass, and who rarely walked. They were here to prove gaming, mainly simracing, could actually give you real-life skills. So far, apart from the three Flash had eliminated, no one else had been sent home yet. This meant Flash was pleased with their skills so far. But that wouldn't be for long.

This would be a hard journey, and for those who made it, it would be even harder. For now, all thoughts of such were forgotten as Sunset and Powerslide began chatting with the trainees, including Sonata, who was telling them how Sunset had beaten her in the Battle of the Bands, thankfully leaving out the stuff related to magic. So far, Sonata didn't really seem to hold much of a grudge against Sunset for making Sonata lose her powers, except for the fact that she was intent on beating Sunset for once. So far, so good, thought Sunset, as she and the other trainees went off to the cafeteria to get some lunch. That was how it would hopefully go.

Comments

[RushingWind-01]

Always remember what Jack Salter said:
"If you miss a line in the game, you reset. You miss it on the track... You could die."

[The Unseen]

11889748
Always.