Run That Race

by The Unseen

Chapters

An Idea Takes Shape
The Student
The Teacher
A Contest Begins
The Eliminator
Welcome to RaceWorld Academy
Training (Part 1)
Training (Part 2)
Training (Part 3)
Graduation
Calm Before the Storm
Contract Signing
Testing (Part 1)
Testing (Part 2)
Off-time
Round 1: Melbourne
Round 2: Jeddah
Round 3: Bahrain
Round 4: Delhi
Round 5: Shanghai

An Idea Takes Shape

Author's Note

In this universe, Canterlot City is a part of the USA.

An Idea Takes Shape

15TH SEPTEMBER 2023

------THUNDERBOLT MOTORSPORTS HEADQUARTERS, CANTERLOT CITY------

It was a beautiful morning in Canterlot City, and the time was 9:00am. Most of the city was already at school or work, but some were only now arriving. Among these was the head of Thunderbolt Motorsports, Soaring Surfer, who was driving his recently acquired Lamborghini Urus, wearing a black three-piece suit with a red tie. They would be one of many new teams on the grid this year of the first season of the FIA's newest series, the Road Car World Championship.

This series was basically a mix of Formula 1, World Endurance Championship, and Super GT. Here, the cars would be similar to those in Super GT, and also to the LMGT3 cars in the World Endurance Championship, but the races were only around two or three hours long, like those in Formula 1. It would have a total of 18 races, with the first race on 16th March 2024, and the final race on 16th November 2024, lasting exactly eight months.

However, Thunderbolt was the first truly brand-new team that would enter the series, having been founded only two months earlier. All of the other teams had participated in at least one other motorsports series. One team had even raced in Formula 1, and another had won Le Mans. They had to make a statement, and Surfer had an idea of how to. He and his marketing team had been working on this idea for a long time now, and would pitch it to the representatives of a few automotive companies today. If all went well, the team would probably be able to race in the 2024 season. If not, well, he didn't want to think about that.

Surfer pulled his Urus into his parking spot at the Thunderbolt Motorsports headquarters, and walked in. The headquarters was a modern building of 15 storeys, all glass windows. A sign at the top of the building, read 'THUNDERBOLT MOTORSPORTS', in large white letters, and emblazoned above it was the team's insignia, a yellow thunderbolt. He went in, and walked straight into the elevator, and pressed the button for the tenth floor. Despite him looking calm on the outside, on the inside, he was nervous. He was taking one of the biggest gambles in motorsports history, so he wasn't surprised about it.

As he walked into the conference room, he was met by the representatives sent by the manufacturers. A lot of them had an annoyed look on their face, but some also had a curious look on their faces, wondering what the team had to pitch to them. Among them was also a familiar face. Among them was Hot Rocket, the team's only driver as of now. She was one of the few woman drivers to enter an official FIA series, and boy, she was good. Surfer had noticed her while on a scouting tour. He was in Brazil, and had witnessed a touring car race at the Interlagos Circuit.

Despite all of the other drivers in that race being men, Hot Rocket had successfully taken first in that race, driving a humble Honda Civic. After doing a little research, he found that that Hot Rocket was burning up the racing scene in Brazil, but wasn't getting any offers into any FIA series, as she was a woman, despite having acquired an FIA racing license. Surfer had recruited her right away, as he could see high potential in her, and he didn't have any regrets.

Apart from being a good driver, Hot Rocket also had the advantage of being very good-looking, with vibrant blue skin and amazing black hair, she always attracted attention at Thunderbolt's press events. Sometimes, Surfer thought that her beauty was what had made the FIA allow their team into the series once they had a second driver and cars in the first place.

Anyways, time to get to cut to the chase, thought Surfer as he began speaking. "Alright, everybody. Thank you for having me. I'm sure you're wondering what this sales pitch I have to show you here today is. Well, here's the head of my marketing team, to show you." said Surfer, as the marketing head turned on a projector. Multiple video clips began playing. All of them were rather similar. They all showed streamers and content creators playing video games. All of them were playing only one game. It was definitely a racing game, due to the fact that the people on the screens were using steering wheel setups, and were driving cars in it.

That was when one of the representatives asked, "Well, Surfer? Why are you showing us videos of people playing video games?"

"Well, Sir, there is a reason why. You see, this one game, RaceWorld, is one of the top trending video games on the planet right now. Close to 100 million people play this game. It has given them a love for cars and driving. In this game, the experience of driving a real car has been meticulously recreated by its developers, along with close to fifty different racetracks, to give the ultimate driving experience to its players. Its the closest thing to racing a real car and living out your dreams in reality." said the marketing head.

"Okay, but what does this game have to do with Thunderbolt Motorsports?" asked another representative.

"Ah, that is a good question. You see, my first job relating to cars was repossessing from buyers who had defaulted on their payments. Most of them always said, 'Fine, take the car. I don't want it anymore'. That is still true today. Normal people don't want to drive their cars and waste gas. They'd prefer sitting in the back of a taxi, and be driven everywhere by someone else. Normal people don't regard their cars as fun and adventurous toys. RaceWorld players do. Majority of RaceWorld's players are die-hard gearheads, who regard a car as something to play with. Something to have fun with. It is a large untapped demographic of car buyers, that we can reach." said Surfer.

That was when one representative asked, "And how do you propose we do that?

"By creating a contest. We offer the best gamers in the world the chance to compete in real motorsports. Through a RaceWorld contest, we recruit one good driver from the virtual world, from behind their console or computer, put one of those gamers on a real racetrack, and turn them into a champion. If we can do that, whichever brand supplies us the cars for the 2024 season will basically have reignited the love of cars and driving, in 100 million people." said the marketing head.

At this sentence, all of the representatives began talking among themselves. A few even started laughing among themselves. Surfer couldn't blame them. Who in their right mind would let a kid who played video games in his bedroom into a racing car? But it was the only way for Thunderbolt Motorsports to get some attention on the track. It was also the only way to get their cars and another driver, since all of the other good drivers had been swiped by other teams, and the only ones left were the bad drivers. They couldn't compete with only one driver.

"Well, thank you for having me, gentlemen. Good day." said Surfer, as he left the conference room, and headed towards the elevator. He got in, and hopped in the elevator to the fourteenth floor. At 9:45am, he arrived at his office, and hoped that his plan would work. Just as he sat at his desk, his receptionist came in.

"Mr. Surfer, one of the representatives would like to see you. Apparently, his company wants to make a deal with you." said the receptionist.

"Alright, send him." said Surfer. The receptionist dutifully obeyed, and the representative walked in. His ID card wore the logo of Porsche.

"Hi, Mr. Surfer. I represent Porsche. I was amazed by your idea. Do you really think that gamers can be real-life racers?" asked the representative.

"Well, I played the game, and it's remarkable, actually, to see how close it comes to simulating driving a real racing car." said Surfer.

"I'm sure you understand what might happen to Thunderbolt Motorsports if one of the gamers in your cars gets hurt? We would all be responsible."

"Yes, I know. It is a big gamble for my team, but I'm willing to take the risk."

"I just had a talk with my superiors, and the company sees some potential in your idea, to increase the sales of Porsche vehicles to car enthusiasts, and we are willing to supply you cars, in this case, the brand new 992 generation of the 911 GT3 R, for the 2024 season of the FIA Road Car World Championship. But there is a condition." said the representative.

"What is that?" asked Surfer, happy that his idea had worked, and that the cars were being supplied by such a renowned brand like Porsche.

"Well, we want you to recruit a certified chief engineer and training driver, to make sure that this is safe. Do you accept these terms?" said the representative, pulling out the contracts, and keeping them on Surfer's desk.

"I accept." said Surfer.

"Good. Let's sign the paperwork, and I'll let my superiors in Germany know." said the representative. Surfer let off a sigh of relief. He was happy that his idea had worked, and they would be getting their cars. But now came the big part. Getting the drivers, and training them. This was going to be a stressful next few months for him and the team.

The Student

17TH SEPTEMBER 2023

------B-202, SUNNY HEIGHTS, CANTERLOT CITY------

It was almost 10:00am here in Canterlot City. Since it was a Sunday, most people were still lazing in their beds, having breakfast, or had gone outside to the mall for some shopping. However, on the 2nd floor of an apartment building named Sunny Heights, a certain bacon-haired girl was doing some unpacking. Sunset Shimmer was especially pleased to receive this delivery, since she had been waiting for it for three months now.

Sunset happily began unboxing the new simracing setup she had ordered. She had saved up quite a bit to buy this setup, but she felt it would be worth, especially since her old setup wasn't so great. If there was one thing Sunset loved, it was cars. When she had first come to the human world after leaving Equestria, after living in the school dormitories for a while, her ex-boyfriend, Flash Sentry, had invited her to a car race at the local track for a date.

At first, Sunset was confused about why someone would want to see cars going around in circles for an hour or two, but after the event, she realised what the excitement was all about. The speed, the adrenaline, the noise of those machines, that was what it was all about. And now, Sunset had turned 17, so now that she had gotten a license and her own car, she could see why people liked these machines.

Their cars were like the extensions of their own body, something that they could control. The feeling couldn't be put into words. In fact, it was so much that Sunset hoped to become a racing driver. However, once she found that racing was a rich person's sport, she had to give up that dream, as she was relatively poor.

Since Sunset was also a gamer, she had decided to also start playing car games. RaceWorld was one of the more recent releases, having come out just two months earlier. Despite that, it was still one of the top trending games on the planet. The game was still extremely popular among simracers and car people, and had more than 100 million players, including Sunset, who was pretty good. As Sunset continued unboxing, her excitement began skyrocketing.

Her new setup included a direct-drive steering wheel, pedals, an H-shifter, and a handbrake. Her phone then rang. It was another player who she often played RaceWorld with. He went by the online alias of Thrustmaster. "Yo, Speed Queen. You got your new setup?" said Thrustmaster. They only knew each other by their online aliases. Sunset's online alias was Speed Queen.

"Yup, Thrustmaster. It's finally here! I've been waiting a month for this! My old setup sucked! It's so nice to finally buy a new one!" replied Sunset.

"So, you think you'll be able to beat some of the top players now?" asked Thrustmaster.

"I don't just think, I know I will!" replied Sunset. "Anyways, gotta finish setting up this up, talk later!" said Sunset, hanging up, as she began removing the equipment from their boxes.

Just as Sunset finished setting everything up, her phone rang. "Oh, shoot, must be the girls." said Sunset, doing a facepalm. They were supposed to be heading to the mall for a movie today. The movie would start in an hour, remembered Sunset, as she picked up the phone, having forgotten about it.

"Sunset, where are you? We're all here, and doing some shopping before the movie!" came the voice of Rainbow Dash.

"Sorry, Dash, I forgot, and I had to receive an important delivery. I'll be there soon." replied Sunset.

"What? Come on, you never forget! Also, there's a lot of traffic, so the mall's pretty far from your place! How are you gonna get here in time? If you want, I can use my super speed to come get you!" said Rainbow.

"No need, I'll be leaving in a minute, I'll be there before the movie starts. See you there." said Sunset, hanging up the phone, and running into the bathroom to change. It was 10:15am, as Sunset quickly left her house after changing, only stopping to grab her phone, wallet, geode, and car keys. It was hard to believe it had only been two months since their visit to Camp Everfree, and only two years since she had come to the human world. The movie would start at 11:00am, and Maps was showing that due to the traffic, it would take Sunset close to an hour to reach the mall. Well, Sunset thought she could bring that time down.

Sunset ran down the stairs, as the elevator was under maintenance, to the basement, where her car was parked. As she reached the basement, only two cars were there. A neighbor's rather broken Chrysler Voyager, and Sunset's car, a red Toyota GT86 that she had bought used right after she had got her license a year earlier. She didn't drive it too much, since both school and her part-time job were within walking distance.

Sunset liked this car as it was rather fun to drive, was cheap to buy, and was reliable, since it was Japanese. It had also had quite a bit of aftermarket customisation, which was something Sunset had liked. She had already done some minor modifications. She had replaced the stock rims with Konig Dekagrams, put on a cold air filter, and also put on a new exhaust, so that it sounded louder.

Sunset climbed into her GT86, locked the doors, and switched on the engine. The car roared to life with a roar, thanks to the modified exhaust, so it sounded like a supercar, despite it having only 200 horsepower. Sunset drove out quickly, and drifted the sports coupe onto the main road, due to it being rear-wheel drive. Sunset vroomed the car, and began heading down the main road. The only thing was that the car took almost 8 seconds to go from 0 to 60 miles per hour, which was rather slow. But she wasn't surprised. It was a GT86, after all.

Sunset continued driving with enthusiasm, her heart pounding in excitement as she pushed the pedal a little more. The sun shone brightly in the sky, casting a warm glow on the streets and the cars that whizzed past her. Sunset knew she had to be careful, but the adrenaline and the need for speed was too strong to resist.

As she navigated through the city, Sunset's mind wandered to her new simracing setup. She couldn't wait to try it out and see how it would improve her gameplay in RaceWorld. She imagined herself zooming past other players, winning races, and becoming the ultimate champion. The thought fueled her determination, and she pushed her car a little harder, knowing she had to reach the mall soon. As she continued speeding down the streets of Canterlot City, she noticed a cop car coming from the side, and quickly hit the brakes, so that she didn't get pulled over.

Thankfully, she slowed down enough so that the cop didn't pull her over, and he didn't notice her car either, currently interrogating a man in an Altima. Of course it was an Altima driver. As Sunset continued speeding through the city, she reached the main road, which was choked with traffic. The radio told her that there had apparently been an accident here, due to which there was now a traffic jam.

Sunset noticed a large multi-level car park a couple of cars ahead, and realised she could cut through it, since it would save her some time and help her avoid the traffic jam. She quickly took the turn towards the car park and began drifting through it, recreating a scene from one of her favorite racing movies. Just as she was heading towards the exit, she realised someone was looking at her car and dialing numbers on a phone. Sunset realised that the man was going to call the police on her, thinking she was a street racer.

Sunset quickly began driving towards the parking lot exit, which was on another road. She began driving towards the exit of the parking lot, and peeled out, hoping that the man hadn't taken caught her license plates. She drove out of the parking lot, and realised there was an alleyway that she could drive through to save time. As Sunset sped through the alleyway, her heart raced with excitement and a hint of fear. She knew she was taking risks, but the thought of reaching the mall in time to catch the movie with her friends kept her going. The narrow alleyway seemed to stretch on forever, with tall buildings on either side, casting deep shadows that danced along the walls.

That was when she looked at her watch, and realised that the movie would be starting in just half an hour, as it was now 10:30am. She needed to get there faster. She pressed the gas pedal, and drifted the GT86 onto the main road. She continued speeding, and just hoped dearly that a cop didn't pull her over. The boxer engine roared, and just as Sunset's car passed 70 miles per hour, she realised that there was traffic ahead, and quickly drifted onto one of the side roads, in a move she had used in RaceWorld plenty of times.

She continued speeding through Canterlot City, and as she continued doing so, she also started using moves from RaceWorld. Sunset wondered how well she could do on a real track. She thought about taking her GT86 to the local racetrack for a track day when it was possible.

Sunset continued racing through the streets, enjoying the fun of driving, and the adrenaline coursing through her veins, as she neared the mall. She drove through a residential layout, hoping that no one was out for a walk at this time. She continued giving it the beans, hitting more than 90 miles per hour on one stretch before slowing down. The cost to fill up the car after this would be worth it.

As she pulled up into the mall parking lot entrance, she noticed quite a few cars queued up, and just hoped spots were still available. Thankfully, despite the queue, there were still spots available, and Sunset drove into one lot, and noticed some familiar cars there. One of them was Rarity's dark purple 2010 Maserati GranCabrio. Rarity had bought the GT convertible for $30,000 on an impulse, thinking she had gotten a good deal by buying an Italian luxury car such as the GranCabrio for a cheap price. Well, Rarity was starting to suffer buyers' regret, after finding out first-hand how unreliable Maseratis were known for being. Sunset wondered how the car had even been able to get Rarity to the mall.

Then there was Twilight's recently acquired bright red 2015 Ford Escape. Twilight had bought it as she had read a lot about cars before buying, and she had calculated that a small SUV such as an Escape or CR-V was the best first car, due to their fuel economy and safety. It was a rather boring looking car, though, and Sunset would not have noticed the Escape had it not been parked next to Rarity's Maserati. Next to that was parked a forest green Ford F-150, which was Granny Smith's truck, that Applejack had borrowed for the day.

Pinkie Pie, Rainbow, and Fluttershy had probably taken a bus or taxi, due to the traffic today, and she couldn't blame them at all. Sunset went into the mall's lobby, and took the escalators to the floor where the movie theater was located. The girls were already waiting there.

"Hey, Sunset! We thought you'd never show up!" said Rainbow.

"Well, I did. Drove down here, a little recklessly, but I'm here. Don't worry, I didn't cause any accidents." said Sunset.

"Oh, you brought down your GT86? Did you try any moves from that game?" asked Rainbow.

"A few, yes, but nothing went wrong. Anyways, let's go and get the popcorn." said Sunset, as the girls all began walking into the movie theater. Soon, they were waiting outside the theater, with popcorn and snacks in head. As they waited, Twilight asked the girls a question.

"So... what do you plan to do once we graduate?" asked Twilight.

"Well, I'll probably just try and become a professional athlete, probably. If not, maybe a coach for a professional sports team." said Rainbow Dash.

"Ah, probably move back to Sweet Apple Acres, and maybe run the place eventually." said Applejack.

"Well, I'll probably go to college, get a degree, and a high-paying job." said Twilight. "What about you, Sunset?"

"Well, I wanted to become a racing driver, but, racing is really a rich person's game. The cars are expensive, and the cost to compete is also expensive. I mean, it costs a hundred thousand dollars to compete in an entry-level touring car series." sighed Sunset.

"Well, you could also go to college like me, and then, probably get a job at a car company or something, to develop and test new cars." said Twilight.

"That's probably what I might do." said Sunset, as the girls all went into the theater, as the movie would start in ten minutes. As they went in, Sunset couldn't imagine the opportunity that would come her way soon to accomplish her dream.

The Teacher

25TH SEPTEMBER 2023

------RICH RACING HEADQUARTERS, LAGUNA SECA CIRCUIT------

It was now 10:00am here in California. Soaring Surfer was at the headquarter track of one of the rival teams in the 2024 season of the FIA Road Car World Championship. In this case, it was Laguna Seca, the home of Rich Racing. The team was owned by Filthy Rich, a Canterlot-based businessman who was known to Surfer as a spa magnate. He was also into heavily into motorsports. His team, Rich Racing, had also participated in Formula 1, Formula 2, and WRC. The team had won two WRC championships, three Formula 2 championships, and a lone Formula 1 championship, so they were pretty good.

The team's star driver was Rash Rider, which, by his name, told everything about his personality. Rash Rider was known for being quite a dangerous driver sometimes, but he had driven for Rich Racing in the lone season of Formula 1 where they had taken the championship. He was quite a good driver. However, he also came from a rich family, and had pretty much bought his way into his first racing team, when he was still a rookie in Formula 3. He had also bought his way into Rich Racing as well. Rich Racing's other driver had also gotten into the sport the same way. Both their primary drivers were just rich brats who had bought their way into motorsports.

This was the first foray for Rich Racing into racing sports cars, and for this, they had gotten the best. As Surfer drove his rented Lincoln Navigator into Laguna Seca, he saw Rich Racing's new cars taking their test laps. Rich Motorsports had gotten themselves some Ferrari 296 GT3s for this. However, they had been covered with the camouflage that car companies used when they road-tested new cars, so all that Surfer could tell was that they were Ferraris. They had been the first team on the grid to already get their new cars, despite the fact that the first race was in March. All of the other teams wouldn't be getting their cars until December or even January.

The reason Surfer was here was because of the condition put forward by Porsche as part of the deal to supply cars to Thunderbolt Motorsports. He wanted to recruit a skilled racing driver as a training driver as part of their gamer recruitment program. However, all of the drivers he had contacted so far were not willing to join Surfer, because they felt his idea was either downright ridiculous or straight-up dangerous. Now, only one was left on the list, and he was working here, at Rich Racing.

As he continued driving, meanwhile, in the Rich Racing pits, the man Surfer was looking for, was lying under the third Rich Racing Ferrari, which had suffered a transmission issue, and had been taken off track. He was currently trying to figure out why the car's transmission case had cracked. He had orange skin, and brown hair. His name was Comet Flash, and he happened to be a former Formula 1 driver. He was now working as one of the top mechanics for Rich Racing.

As Surfer pulled his Navigator into the parking lot, he knew the reason why a former F1 driver was now working as a mechanic, at a team like Rich Racing, despite his apprehensions. Surfer knew that when he used to race, Comet Flash had hated rich drivers who had bought their way into motorsports. Surfer walked into the main building of Rich Racing, where he was greeted by the receptionist. "Hi, what can I do for you, Sir?" asked the receptionist.

"Well, young lady, I'm here to see a man by the name of Comet Flash. He's one of your pit crew." replied Surfer.

"Ah, I see. I'll inform Mr. Flash that you have arrived." said the receptionist, grabbing her telephone, and began phoning. In the pits, the pit boss got the phone, and called up Comet Flash from under the Ferrari.

"Yo, Comet, some guy in a suit has come to see you. Make it quick. Rider wants that car fixed by the end of the day." said the pit boss.

"Okay, tell him to come to the pits, I'll meet him there." said Flash, sliding out from under the Ferrari. He went off to grab a towel and wipe up, before meeting Surfer. At the entrance, the receptionist told Surfer that he could go to the pits to meet Flash. Surfer thanked her and went off towards the pits.

At exactly 10:30am, Surfer and Comet Flash met up outside the pits, near the pit lane. They watched one of the Rich Racing Ferraris come back in for a quick change of tires and fuel, before it went out for another few laps. "Alright, what were you talking about on the phone yesterday? You seemed stressed." said Flash.

"Well, yes, I am. My team is new, and I am taking a very big gamble with the plan I have in mind." said Surfer.

"What is this plan?" asked Flash. Surfer quickly briefed Flash about the plan, and his eyes widened in surprise. "What is the team getting out of this, huh? More PR, and being called crazy?! You want to take some kid who plays a video game in his or her bedroom, and putting them in a machine capable of going more than two hundred miles per hour? It'll tear them to pieces!"

"These players have clocked more track time than you have in your whole career. Plus, our plan convinced one car manufacturer. Porsche is supplying us the cars for the season, provided we hire a certified chief engineer and training driver, which is why I contacted you." said Surfer.

"Damn, I can't believe you convinced Porsche to get you the cars with this plan of yours. You do realise that if someone messes up out on a track in real life, they can't just hit reset!" said Flash.

"Well, that's where you come in. You're going to train them to drive real racecars, and the best one will be our second driver for the season. We can't get a reserve driver, however, as all of the wildcard slots for this season are filled."

"Look, it's been almost nine years since I last raced, and I'm not sure I've got the skills to train someone, especially people who haven't driven a racecar before."

"Well, you're my only choice. You were a pretty good driver back in the day."

"Are you sure I'M your only choice? I've been a mechanic for almost nine years! Did you try any other drivers, ones who still race?" asked Flash.

Surfer just sighed at that. That was when Flash realised. "None of the other drivers you called were willing, huh?"

"Yes." sighed Surfer. "But look at this! Don't you want to take racing away from these arrogant pricks, who can just buy it all?!" asked Surfer, trying to motivate Flash.

"Well, I'll have to think about it. I'll call and tell you my decision later." said Flash, heading back towards the pits. Surfer hoped that Flash would respond to his decision, or else, it was game over for Thunderbolt Motorsports. He thought about this as he walked out of the place, to his Navigator, which was parked outside, and drove back to his hotel in the city of Monterey, which was twenty minutes from Laguna Seca.

Meanwhile, Flash headed back towards his place in the pits, and got back under the Ferrari, where he had figured out the issue. The transmission case on the car was cracked. It was due to Rash Rider cutting a track corner and hitting a cone. Despite the fact he hated rich kids like Rash Rider, the reason he was working at Rich Racing was to keep afloat in these times, as he had no intention of actually racing again. But still, he hated rich kids like Rash Rider. They had all just used their money to buy their way into racing without much actual skill, were hot-headed, drover recklessly, and always mistreated their cars. All they cared about was winning at all costs, even if they killed someone.

Later that night, the main parts of Rich Racing, including Rash Rider and Comet Flash, headed into Monterey for dinner at a very fancy Italian restaurant there. Filthy Rich would be meeting them there to discuss how well the team's performance for the 2024 season was going. Flash drove there in his car, a brand-new bright blue Toyota Supra Mk. 5, while Rash Rider was chauffeured there in a black Rolls-Royce Cullinan, along with his teammate. They had also changed their clothes, from their work wear to suits. Flash was wearing a blue suit with a white tie, while Rash Rider was wearing a black suit with a black tie.

On arriving at the restaurant, he noticed a few other fancy cars there, including a white Rolls-Royce Phantom, a purple Lamborghini Huracan, and a white and black Bugatti Veyron, which Flash recognised as Filthy Rich's car. Flash felt a little regretful, parking his humble Supra next to cars like the Veyron and Cullinan. It reminded him what he could have been, had he not quit racing.

If not for that one fateful day, he would have been at this level. Fancy cars, a mansion in Malibu, probably running his own team. Almost nine years since that day. Flash remembered that day. Lying upside-down in his flipped car, with rescue staff gathering around. Just a few laps were left, he was in second, and had a pretty good lead on the guy in third. He could have just been satisfied with a podium finish. But no, he had to be too pushy for the win, didn't he?. Flash quickly blinked away the memories of that horrifying day, straightened his tie as he got out of his Supra, locked the car, and walked into the restaurant. Everyone was taking their places, including Filthy Rich, who was already waiting for them. He was wearing his classic apparel, a blue suit, and a red tie with a dollar sign emblazoned on it.

"Alright, team. How is our progress for the inaugural season of the FIA Road Car World Championship?" asked Filthy Rich.

"Good, Mr. Rich. Testing is going good. I still don't understand why you wanted us to get our cars now, even though the season doesn't start till March. Also, how did you persuade Ferrari to already deliver our cars?" asked the crew chief.

"Well, I just paid them an advance to get the cars to us early. Also, I want you to get to know your cars better. The other teams will be getting their cars later, so we will have an advantage in knowing your driving techniques better. That way, we will have a chance at taking the championship. Last year, we didn't have that great a season in Formula 1 and WRC. This year, in this new championship, we will. You're a good driver, Rider." said Filthy Rich. At that statement, Flash had the 'I ain't so sure about that' face, which Rash Rider noticed.

"You got something to say, mechanic?!" asked Rash Rider, angrily.

"Well, you were a little slow coming out of Turn 8. You had to push it there, that, and you managed to crack the transmission case by going wide and hitting that cone. Look, you're a good driver, Rash, but, you get emotional, and that messes up your perf-" said Flash, as Rash Rider banged the table angrily, shaking the plates, and making everyone look at him.

"Look, if I want racing advice, I'll talk to my crew chief, not some old man who couldn't make it out there all those years ago!" shouted Rash Rider angrily. That made everyone except for Comet Flash laugh. Instantly, he got up from his seat.

"I quit. I got a job offer, and I'm taking it. I'm done at Rich Racing." said Flash, as he put on his suit jacket, and stormed out of the restaurant. As he headed towards his Supra, he called Surfer's number on his phone. The second Surfer answered, Flash spoke. "Hey, Surfer. I'm taking up your offer. I'm training your gamers. Just show me what they can do. I'm going home to pack up, and then book the first flight to Canterlot City."

"Oh. What changed at Rich Racing?" asked Surfer.

"I'll tell you at the Thunderbolt Motorsports HQ. I'm just sick of rich kids in motorsports." said Flash, hanging up, as he climbed into his Supra, and turned the car on. The car's BMW-sourced six-cylinder engine roared to life, and Flash peeled the Supra out of the restaurant's parking lot, heading towards his house in Monterey, as if he were reliving his days as a racing driver. Flash had one goal now. To show the world that you didn't need to be rich to enter the world of motorsports.

A Contest Begins

15TH OCTOBER 2023

------B-202, SUNNY HEIGHTS, CANTERLOT CITY------

It was now 3:00pm here in Canterlot City. Sunset had just returned to her house after school. It had been quite a day, with a decent amount of homework being assigned, and three tests next week. Sunset decided to play a bit of RaceWorld before getting to her first assignment. Sunset turned on her setup, and opened up RaceWorld. The RaceWorld logo came up, but however, instead of the main menu of the game, something else came up.

It was a video. That was not that odd, since videos like this one usually played after a major update to show whatever new features and cars had been added to the game. However, it had been only two weeks since the last major update to RaceWorld. Such updates usually came once every few months. Sunset decided to take a look anyways. As the video began playing, she realised it was definitely not an update. It showed a man standing in front of four Porsche 911 GT3s. He was speaking into the camera.

"Hello, lucky player! You've been selected as a candidate for RaceWorld Academy, where you'll learn to race a car in real life! We're holding a series of qualifiers, to select ten lucky young people to join RaceWorld Academy! If you get first place on the leaderboard in one of the final qualifiers, you're going to RaceWorld Academy! The first qualifier is on the 17th, so start practicing now, racers! Good luck!" said the man, as the video ended.

Sunset couldn't believe her eyes. Was this real, or were the developers giving them a belated April Fools joke? That was when her phone rang. It was Thrustmaster who was calling. "Yo, Speed Queen, did you see that video?" asked Thrustmaster.

"Yeah, Thrustmaster, but it just feels like a very late April Fools joke." said Sunset.

"Nope, it's real alright. That video only came to some of the RaceWorld players, not all. It's all over the news in the motorsports world. It's an actual contest, being sponsored by both RaceWorld and Porsche. Its part of that new FIA series that begins racing next year, the Road Car World Championship. Apparently, a new Canterlot City-based team, Thunderbolt Motorsports, will take one of us as a main driver!" said an excited Thrustmaster.

"I heard about that team! Aren't they new to motorsports entirely?" asked Sunset.

"Yeah, their owner, Soaring Surfer, is an adventure sports magnate. He also owns a private jet charter airline. The guy's quite the gearhead, so he's finally decided to get into the world of motorsports."

"Huh. I've heard of him, but I never knew he was a car guy. So, he's the mastermind of this?"

"Yep, he's the guy behind this entire plan. There is quite some skepticism in the pro racing world about this, though, which is not surprising."

"I know, right? Anyways, I'm going to quickly check the news, see you later, Thrustmaster!" said Sunset, hanging up the call. She opened up a news app on her phone, and went to the sports section. The trending article read, 'THUNDERBOLT MOTORSPORTS TO TRAIN GAMERS TO RACE CARS IRL'. Sunset opened the article, and read the whole thing. She was surprised at how big a gamble Thunderbolt was taking, being so new to motorsports. Sunset realised this could be her chance to become a real racing driver. She realised the only reason why the video had come only to some of the players was that they were some of the best players of the game.

Sunset instantly selected a car, and joined one of the online lobbies. She had to practice, if she wanted to get this chance to be a real racer. The starting lights appeared on her screen, as the race was about to begin. Sunset thought to herself, how amazing it would be, to race on a real track. The race in-game started, and Sunset, along with all of the players, zoomed off the starting line. In this case, the track chosen was the Fuji Speedway in Japan, a track Sunset dreamed of racing at in real life, due to it being a very underrated track, and its views of Mount Fuji.

Sunset quickly passed most of her opponents, gunning towards the player in first place. It was a player who she had raced against multiple times in the game. A person whom she also happened to know IRL. It was Lightning Dust, Rainbow Dash's old rival. Lightning Dust was a car girl, unlike Rainbow Dash. Even in a video game, she was extremely reckless. Some people never changed, no matter if they were in the real or virtual world.

As Sunset attempted to overtake Lightning Dust, Lightning Dust dangerously blocked her, causing Sunset to almost rear-end Lightning. Somehow, Lightning Dust had made loopholes to work around some of the game's rules, so that she didn't get banned for being reckless. Oh, well. Sunset began accelerating towards Lightning Dust again, getting on Dust's virtual rear bumper. Sunset wondered what kind of setup Lightning Dust had, since she was not lagging at all, while some of the other players were lagging a bit.

The virtual duel continued between the two players as they accelerated their cars, leaving the other players eating their exhaust fumes. Sunset then tried to overtake from the outside, as they entered the final lap. It was a short race, only two laps. As they entered the final turn, Sunset quickly slammed the brakes, and overtook Lightning Dust successfully from the inside, as Dust locked up and went too far outside. As Sunset accelerated towards the finish, she could imagine Lightning Dust probably screaming at her computer screen, and probably even breaking her setup.

Sunset didn't waste much time on the awards menu, and went straight to the schedule of the RaceWorld Academy contest. The first qualifier was in two days, on the 17th. There were two more qualifiers after that, and then, a final eliminator round on the 30th, so it would last just under two weeks. Sunset instantly got ready to run a few more races. This was the only way to fulfil her dreams of becoming a real racing driver.

The Eliminator

30TH OCTOBER 2023

------CANTERLOT HIGH SCHOOL, AMORE AVENUE, CANTERLOT CITY------

It was now 12:00pm here in Canterlot City, and since it was a working day, most people were at school or work, including Sunset Shimmer. Sunset was in her Algebra class at CHS, and she was a little annoyed about it. She wanted to stay at home, to prepare for the final Eliminator of the RaceWorld Academy entry contest. She had managed to qualify after finishing in the top 3 spots in all three qualifiers. The eliminator was this evening, and Sunset hoped to be back home before it started, so she could participate.

The decision that Thunderbolt Motorsports had made to put gamers on a real racetrack was extremely controversial, and arguments were being made about this through the world of racing. Some, including popular content creators, influencers, and even some now-retired racing drivers were towards this, but others were against this. A lot of them felt that they would just crash since they couldn't handle a real steering wheel. Thankfully, Sunset's friends, who were the only ones who knew that she had entered this contest, were supporting her.

Sunset was eagerly waiting for this class to finish so she could rush to her next class. Ms. Cheerilee was sure taking a while to explain the current concept. Lunch break was soon, thankfully. Sunset had thought about skipping school for once, but there was a Chemistry test in the next period, so she couldn't afford to skip school today. The bell rang a few minutes later, and all of the students ran for the cafeteria for lunch. Sunset pretty much ran to the cafeteria, so that she could get her food first and study for the test.

Thankfully, Sunset was able to get there first and do so, and just as she got to her seat, her friends joined her, having brought their own lunches. "Wow, Sunset, you're going quite fast today! I thought the eliminator of the contest was in the evening?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"Yeah, but I want to be out of here before the contest starts. This is the only way for me to become a real racing driver!" said Sunset.

"I know, Sunset, but if you don't make it, you do need a backup plan, so you have to get a decent academic score for that reason." said Twilight.

"Sure. Let's memorise for this test. Mr. Cranky Doodle's gonna make it hard, I know that." said Sunset, grabbing her Chemistry book and beginning to revise the chapters. At exactly 1:00pm, Sunset and her friends, having revised for the test, entered Cranky Doodle's classroom for the test. Ten minutes later, the test began, and the whole class went silent, and only the scratching of pens was heard, as everyone tried to figure it out. Twilight was the first one to finish the test, finishing it in only ten minutes, followed by Micro Chips five minutes later.

Meanwhile, Sunset was still writing the test. However, the memories of racing still kept coming to her in the middle of the test. She could hear the roar of engines, smell burning rubber, see clouds of exhaust fumes and tire smoke... oops, she was getting carried away, realised Sunset, as she focused on trying to get a good score in the test. However, Sunset seemed to have trouble trying to focus, being so fixated on trying to get home soon to get in the eliminator, and enter RaceWorld Academy.

Sunset could only think about the adrenaline of racing in a real car, on a real track, oh, it was so amazing, but that was when Cranky Doodle shouted, "Only fifteen minutes left, everyone!" That shocked Sunset, who instantly began writing faster to complete the test. She had somehow forgotten the last three answers, and couldn't remember them, no matter how hard she tried, so she just wrote some random things that she hoped were close to the answers, and then submitted her test.

As Sunset left the class after the test, her friends followed her. "Sunset, darling, what happened? You seemed awfully distracted during the test." said Rarity.

"I know, but I just couldn't stop thinking about what life would be like if I got into RaceWorld Academy. Fame, fortune, living out my dreams on a real racetrack, oh my, that would be amazing!" shouted Sunset.

"I know, Sunset, but you do realise you might not have gotten good marks on that test." said Twilight.

"I actually got everything except the last three questions, so I'm getting decent marks on this test." explained Sunset.

"You still should have gotten higher marks on the test! You shouldn't have been daydreaming so much!" said Twilight.

"I know! Anyways, the next period is the last class, then I can go home!" said Sunset, running to her next class. She was a little annoyed at her friends, for rubbing it in that she had been daydreaming during the test. It was annoying alright, but she just couldn't stop thinking about what life would be like as a real racing driver.

Right after the last class ended at 3:00pm, Sunset hopped into her GT86, and sped off at very high speed, almost running over someone who stupidly tried to cross the road, despite seeing Sunset's car coming. Sunset didn't care about much else right now, apart from making it home in time to play the Eliminator. She began speeding up, going over 50 miles per hour, and drifting quite recklessly. Sunset didn't want to get pulled over, but she didn't want to go slowly either.

The adrenaline coursed through her veins as she raced through the streets of Canterlot City, just as she had done last month. She swiftly did so, arriving at Sunny Heights barely twenty minutes after she had left school, which was a record for her. She quickly drifted into her spot, almost avoiding her neighbor's Aztek, and switched off the car. Sunset ran if she was in a gunfight, quickly grabbing her bag, locking her car, and running up the stairs at high speed. She quickly opened the door, threw her bag onto her bed, and quickly turned on her computer, as she went off to change.

At exactly 3:30pm, Sunset, now changed into home clothes, got on her setup, ready for the Eliminator. Sunset selected her car, which was going to be the recently-added 992 generation Porsche 911 GT3. The rules of the contest said that the competitors only had to use the 992 GT3, that too, only in stock form. Sunset hadn't customised the car in any way, except for its paint, which matched her shade of yellow. This race would be held on a virtual version of the Nürburgring Nordschleife. It would last only a single lap, since the Nordschleife was such a long track.

Sunset spawned into the Eliminator lobby, which was still a few minutes from starting. She would be starting in fifteenth place, and there were 20 drivers in this lobby. Whoever came first would be the one of many drivers who would join RaceWorld Academy. There were 20 eliminators being held, if Sunset remembered correctly, so 19 others would join her at RaceWorld Academy if she won.

The other drivers began spawning into the game, and a few minutes later, it was time for the Eliminator to start. Sunset and all of the players revved their virtual engines, as the race start lights appeared on the screen, and their distinctive beeping sound began as they counted down. For Sunset, everything went into slow motion, as the lights went from red, to green, and she could hear nothing but the growl of flat-6 engines on her headphones, as all of the racers launched their cars from the starting line.

Despite it being in a computer screen, Sunset felt as if she was there, in the seat of the car, as they slowed down almost immediately for the first turn of the Nordschleife. The racers continued out of the corner, through Hatzenbach, speeding towards Flugplatz, the first dangerous corner on this track. Sunset remembered that Flugplatz in German meant 'airfield', which was due to how many cars literally flew in the air here, due to it being quite a sharp crest. Now, it wasn't so, since it had been renovated a while back.

As all the cars drove out of the virtual Flugplatz, Sunset had successfully fought to twelfth place, and it was going to get harder as they headed onto the fastest part of the Nordschleife, Kottenborn. This was a downhill straight, and all the cars accelerated as they went through it. Sunset's speed rose, from just 100 miles per hour, to 110, 120, 130... her speed kept increasing as they all went through Kottenborn, before entering Schwedenkreuz. Everyone was still flat out, going almost 200 miles per hour. They could hear nothing but the scream of the engines, as they continued through this section. Most of the cars were a while apart from each other, but Sunset was busy in a battle with a blue GT3 for 10th place.

This guy wasn't letting up, thought Sunset, as the cars entered Aremberg, before heading into Fuchsöhre, the next main corner. This was where Sunset would strike. It was another fast downhill, and just as they entered Fuchsöhre, both cars sped up, and Sunset was the first one to pull ahead. Man, that was fun, thought Sunset, as she entered 10th place with the blue car on her exhaust pipe. It then entered a series of switchback turns through the forests.

The whole road began to climb uphill, and the blue car stopped accelerating, just as he realised that they were about to go over the crest, which could be a jump if too fast. Sunset began hitting the brakes, as they both went over at the same time. Sunset's car went all four wheels off the ground for a split second, before it hit the ground thanks to her hitting the brakes just as they went over the crest. She could feel the jolt of the car hitting the ground through her setup, just showing the realism of the game.

Her opponent wasn't so lucky. He went over the crest way too fast, and his car went airborne, flying through the air, smashing into the ground hard on all four wheels. He lost control of his virtual car, and smashed into the barriers. Realistic damage and no reset were enabled, so his car was quite damaged, and he was out of the Eliminator. Sunset could imagine from screaming at his computer, wondering why he had been so stupid. Sunset was starting to catch up to the rest of the top 10, as the cars headed towards Bergwerk. This was the most notorious corner on the track, as multiple fatal crashes had occurred at this corner.

It was a pretty tight right-hander, right after that long fast section and a left-hand kink, which require for quite some hard braking from all the drivers. Sunset also braked, and during this, she successfully overtook one of the drivers from the inside, as he locked up his brakes and went outside, putting Sunset in ninth place. Sunset was now quite close behind the top 8 drivers, but they weren't going down without a fight, as they hit the gas again, and sped towards Kesselchen. This part was relatively fast, but the pace slowed down as they arrived at Steilstrecke, which was a long hairpin, where all of the drivers were forced to slow down, as they entered the hairpin, where the battle continued, as the guy in tenth tried to regain his place from Sunset. Just as he tried to overtake, Sunset slammed the door on him, keeping him back in tenth place.

As they reached the top of another crest, they entered the banked turns, Caracciola Karussell. It was quite a bumpy section IRL, due to it being made of concrete, and Sunset could feel the vibrations through her sim setup. She felt quite bad for drivers who had to race this section of the track IRL. It reminded Sunset of the NASCAR tracks she had raced in the game, albeit much bumpier and less steeper. All of the drivers successfully exited Karussell at the apex, and the race continued, as the tenth place guy continued to try and retake ninth from Sunset. However, Sunset kept blocking him, and continued accelerating towards the top 8.

It was quite a steep section that they passed through next, and soon after that, they were headed towards Brünnchen, aka the video corner of the Nordschleife. It was called also as majority of the Nürburgring videos online had been filmed from this corner, which was the main spectator area of the track. Sunset overtook guys in a battle at once as they passed that corner, putting Sunset in seventh place. Just a few more cars to pass now. They were just reaching Pflanzgarten, which had two big jumps. The guy in sixth place messed up on the very first jump, and his car went airborne. Well, he was out of the eliminator, thought Sunset, as she went into sixth. On this section, there was no room for error.

They then passed through Schwalbenschwanz, where Sunset made another overtake, and got into fifth place. From there, they entered Klein's Karussell, which would lead to the final main straight. Here, Sunset passed the drivers in third and fourth as they were in a battle, putting Sunset in third. As the cars began to enter the final main straight, everyone hit their virtual gas pedals, and the scream of flat-6s was heard again as they all began accelerating. This was where they could hit their top speed.

It was about to turn into a 200mph high-speed battle, realised Sunset, as the roar of the naturally aspirated V6 filled her ears. Just two more cars to go, and she would enter RaceWorld Academy. Sunset easily overtook the guy in second place, as his virtual engine overheated. Must have forgotten to disable the engine failures setting, though Sunset. Now only one guy was left, the leader. He was not going easy, blocking Sunset everytime she attempted to overtake him. Sunset tried from both the left and right sides, but he kept blocking her. He was definitely a pro, that was for sure.

Sunset thought of an idea, but couldn't use just yet. They had to reach the end of this straight first. Sunset kept attempting to overtake him as the end of the straight approached. Just as he was about to slam his brakes, Sunset slammed on them, pretty much, causing smoke to come from her tires. Thankfully, she didn't lock up. Her opponent braked a little later, but the speed difference was huge, and he oversteered, as Sunset overtook from the inside. Her left wheels were almost off the track, and the right side of her car was almost touching him. Sunset instantly hit the gas, and sped past him, as he tried to catch up. But now, there were no more opportunities to overtake, as Sunset zoomed through the final turns, and towards the finish line, now in first.

As Sunset passed the finish line, a video played on her screen. "Congratulations, lucky player! You've won the Eliminator, and now you're part of twenty lucky players who are off to RaceWorld Academy! Details will appear on the screen, so get to packing! You're heading to RaceWorld Academy on the 1st of November!" said the man on the screen from the announcement video.

Sunset instantly took off her headphones, and began dancing in her room. She was going to RaceWorld Academy. She would finally become a real racing driver, and fulfil her dream. Nothing could make her sad right now. She was over the Moon.

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 most-well known 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.

Training (Part 1)

14TH NOVEMBER 2023

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

It was 6:30am here in Wisconsin, which meant it was around 7:30am back home in Canterlot City. Sunset Shimmer and her fellow trainees were already up and awake, and they were dreading what Comet Flash had in store for them today. He had been physically training all of them, very brutally. He made them run or jog down the track, and he would make them until they had almost collapsed. The reason that he gave for such hard training was simple, "I'm just building your endurance. The thing is, if you get tired, you get sloppy. You get sloppy, you lose concentration. You lose concentration, you lose races!"

For Sunset, Sonata, and some of the other trainees, who regularly hit the gym, it was a little easier, but a lot of the trainees weren't really into sports or physical activity, so it was quite hard for them, because they frequently ran out of energy, and cramped out. Right now, only 15 trainees were left. Two had quit, after one of them had puked on the track after a run, and the other had been pulled out by his parents, after he had told them that he had suffered leg cramps while running.

Plus, Flash had been making them take reflex tests, to test their reflexes and reaction times. It seemed simple. On the wall, he had placed a few lights, and when one lit up, you had to press it, and another would light up. It seemed simple until you realised that the lights came on very fast, so you had to be quick to press one, else you would lose your score. Sunset and Sonata had been in enough hairy situations to have great impulses, so it was a battle between the two girls everyday for the high score. The others, however, weren't as good, and Comet Flash always was chewing someone out, which made it worse, but the trainees were determined to prove the world wrong, that simracers could actually race a car IRL. Now, the others were relatively better, but Sunset and Sonata were still on top.

Today was a day all of the trainees were excited about. Today was the day they would get to drive real sports cars for the first time. For now, it would now be on the main track, but a slalom course had been set up in the large empty parking lot of Road America, just next to the pit lane. Despite this, they were all excited to drive cars that they could only have dreamed of driving before RaceWorld Academy.

The trainees, after a quick protein shake, went out for their usual 7:00am jog, which took them much further than they had been on the first jog a couple of weeks earlier. Around 8:30am, they got back to the Academy, where they quickly washed off all the sweat, which was plenty despite the cold weather, had some breakfast, and then, went off to Comet Flash's theory class. Here, they had to learn about various penalties, racing strategies, pitting strategies, and other things about racing. This was probably the only class most of them would ever pay attention to, but it also did bore some people a little. This class would last till 12:30pm, at which point the trainees went and got lunch. After lunch, it was time for the fun part.

It was now 2:00pm. This was the moment they had all been waiting for. They would all finally be driving real sports cars for the first time ever. They stepped out to the parking lot, where the course had been set up, and the cars were all parked up. They would be using 911 GT3 road cars, as it would be too risky to train on the actual race cars. The five GT3s were standing there, spotless. The cars, even though they were not even on, seemed to be calling to the trainees, to be driven. Comet Flash and the other staff were there, ready to supervise them, and get ready in case of an accident.

Comet Flash was the first one to speak. "Alright, you scrawny kids are finally going to drive a real race car. This will be a pretty simple slalom course. All you have to do is stay within the cones from start to finish, and also, pass through that hole in the wall shaped like the car. In racing, if you see a window, TAKE IT, no matter how small it is." said Flash, pausing to catch his breath.

"That's why I've put that challenge in here. Also, try not to wreck the cars already, else our main sponsor's gonna back out. So that it's fair, all the cars are bone stock, with fresh tires, and fully fuelled." Again, Flash was also quite annoying, something the trainees hated about him.

"Okay, you'll be paired with some of our crew members here, as I'll be watching and rating your performances." said Flash, as he went off to the observation point. In the meantime, the pairs were assembled, one crew member per car. The first one up was Powerslide, in the red GT3. The trainees watched as he drove up to the starting point, followed by four other trainees. Powerslide was given the signal, and he vroomed off.

He went through the slalom course pretty well, not hitting a single cone. He also made it through the tougher obstacle, where the driver had to fit the car through a hole in a wall. This hole was shaped exactly like the car. Somehow, he didn't even manage to damage the car, not even a mirror. Sunset decided to ask him later how he had managed that. The next two trainees also managed it.

However, on the fourth trainees try, during the hole-in-the-wall section, as he passed through the wall, he managed to pass a little too left, and ended up breaking off the Porsche's mirror. The second that happened, Flash used a bullhorn to deliver quite a harsh one to him, "Wow! You broke your mirror! Extra points!" said Flash, sarcastically, through the bullhorn. All the drivers were ordered to drive with windows down for safety reasons, so they could see the trainee banging his head against the steering wheel in anger and humiliation, as he brought the sports car, now minus it's left mirror, back towards the waiting area.

The fifth trainee also was able to do it successfully, without damage, although he hit a cone during his run. The next set of trainees included Sunset and Sonata. The car with the damaged mirror was temporarily pulled out to have the mirror fixed. In the meantime, the spare car was rolled out, and the next set of trainees got ready. She was the first one to roll up to the start of the course, in the shark blue GT3. Sunset's crew member told her not to be nervous and just take a deep breath.

Sunset, however, wasn't really that nervous, just a little excited, and when the light turned green, she punched the gas, and the sports car shot forward, with a roar from its engine. The G-forces pushed Sunset back into the seat, and she would have hurt her neck had she not been wearing a seatbelt and her helmet. This was nothing like the simulator, or her own car. Sunset quickly began turning the car, as she reached the slalom course. Thankfully, on the turns, Sunset didn't hit any cones. However, the big obstacle was ahead. The hole in the wall. Sunset made a quick calculation, and went through it doing past 80 miles per hour, without damaging the car at all.

The second she passed through it, she quickly hit the brakes, locking them up in the process, for the braking zone set up ahead. She stopped well before the barricades because of that. Pleased with her performance, Sunset began turning the car back towards the waiting area, only to get chewed out by Comet Flash. "Okay, that was good, but try NOT to lock up next time, you don't get points for that."

Sonata went after Sunset, and she did the whole thing, without hitting any cones, or locking up any brakes. As Sonata pulled up back at the waiting area, she was giving Sunset a smug grin. it was now 4:30pm. Once all of the other trainees had done their tries, albeit with a few hitting cones, Flash had said through the bullhorn, "All right, I want you to all go again until you've made it through the course at least TWICE, WITHOUT HITTING A SINGLE CONE OR LOCKING UP YOUR BRAKES! Again, the cars are now on fresh tires and a full tank, so we may be going at this until night time. Get on with it!"

The trainees, although tired, continued the session, until around 7:30pm, when every single trainee had managed to do exactly that, albeit with some puking, due to the violent motions of the car. After that, Flash called it a day. "Alright, that's enough for today. Tomorrow, we'll do some more, and then, after a few more days, we'll start doing actual laps. Off to your rooms now." said Flash, as he headed back towards the RaceWorld Academy building.

The trainees were now a little more nervous about this, know that they knew what a real sports car felt like. Yet, they were still excited, and daring, willing to prove this. Also, the rivalry between Sunset and Sonata was heating up, as Sonata had outperformed Sunset in this one, making it through the course 4 times without locking her brakes or hitting a cone, while Sunset had only managed it twice. This was going to be more exciting soon, the trainees felt.

Training (Part 2)

17TH NOVEMBER 2023

------5 MILES FROM ROAD AMERICA------

It was now 8:00am here in Wisconsin. Sunset, Sonata, Powerslide, and the other trainees were a little surprised at why Comet Flash had brought them here, to a rallycross track just around 5 miles, or 8 kilometers, from Road America. The cars had also been brought here, including the one with the broken mirror, which had now been fixed after that little fiasco some days earlier. On the second attempt at the parking lot slalom course on the 15th, everyone had made it. However, one trainee had to go home after he had violently puked after his run on the slalom course. So, only 14 of them were left now. Comet Flash had instantly disqualified him right then and there, stating that only weak racers puked at such low speeds.

They were all wondering why they were at a rallycross track when Comet Flash showed up, finally. "Alright, kiddos, I guess you're all wondering why you're here." said Flash. "Well, today, I'm gonna test how well you can handle your cars on a track."

"But, Mr. Flash, if you want to see how we can handle our cars, why not do it at Road America, instead of a rallycross track?" asked Sunset.

"Well, Miss Shimmer, you see, if you wanna learn how to race better on asphalt, you need to learn how to race properly on dirt. Learning how to race on dirt will help you drive better on asphalt as you'll understand your car. But if you continue to struggle in keeping your car straight on dirt, then you'll struggle to keep your mobility out on an asphalt track. Hence, we're going to be doing laps on the rallycross track for a few days." explained Flash.

"Okay, Sir." said Sunset.

"I'll give you a hint to controlling a car on the asphalt, since I'm a nice guy. If you're going hard enough left, you'll find yourself turning right." said Flash.

"So, you're basically saying turn right to go left?" asked one trainee.

"Yep, turn right to go left. That's all I'm telling you. I'll be watching you..." said Flash, as he walked off, to an observation point. The trainees were a little stressed about this one. None of them had ever driven a car on a dirt track IRL before. The first group of 5, which included Sunset and Sonata, would hit the track first. As they walked up to the cars, they realised that to make it tougher, Flash had put slicks on the Porsches. Oh, this was going to be tough, thought Sunset, as she hopped in the red GT3, while Sunset hopped in the black one. Their only advantage was that the cars were AWD.

The Porsche 911s were started up, and were driven out onto the dirt track. The moment they entered the track and hit the gas, the cars fishtailed, since they were not built for dirt racing. In a straight line, it was okay, but the second they tried to take a turn, the cars would not turn, and just skid sideways down the track. Sunset spun out doing this, but Sonata on the other hand, made the turn. An annoyed Sunset instantly hit the gas again, intent on catching up to Sonata. She did wonder what Comet Flash meant by 'Turn right to go left.' That was weird. Why would you go the opposite direction of the way you wanted to go?

Sunset decided to try it, and on the next turn, which was a left turn, she turned right instead. However, just like on the previous turn, she ended up spinning out instead. Except for Sonata, Sunset's fellow racers weren't having much luck either. Thankfully, none of the cars were damaged so far, but they had all spun at least once, and were having a hard time on the dirt. Sunset angrily recovered her car, and sped up again, intending to overtake Sonata. Well, Flash's hint hadn't worked, so she'd just try it her way.

As Sunset entered the next turn, a right, she turned right, doing around 80 miles per hour, and as she did so, she felt the car begin to spin. Sunset instinctively turned the car the other way to not spin, countersteering. As she did so, the Porsche didn't spin. Instead, the car drifted through the turn, as Sunset hit the gas and countersteered at the same time, to avoid spinning out. Sunset now realised what Flash meant by 'Turn Right to Go Left'. She had to use drifting to get through this track. As she did so, she could see her fellow drivers in the rear-view mirror also mimicking her moves, realising what they needed to do now.

Sunset also was having fun, doing some drifting, feeling like a real rally driver. She was also catching up to Sonata, who was surprised to see Sunset gaining on her. Sonata instantly hit the gas, and so did Sunset, but the Porsches weren't performing in the dirt as well as they would on asphalt. Sunset realised why Flash had made them do this test, to see how well they could maneuver their vehicles. Now that they knew what to do, the trainees' confidence went up, as their cars began drifting through the mud. It looked like a rallycross event, albeit with expensive German sports cars instead of rally cars.

As the race continued, Sunset continued gaining on Sonata, coming closer and closer to her car with every drift she made. Sonata was also using drifting, but she wasn't as good at it as Sunset was. A few laps in, Sunset's car was literally tapping Sonata's rear bumper. This time, it would be easier to pass, since Sonata's car was fishtailing quite a bit in the dirt. However, Sonata kept moving aggressively, to prevent Sunset from overtaking. This kept up for a few turns, before Sonata understeered on one turn, going to the outside. This gave Sunset the chance to overtake, which she took, putting herself in first place. Now, she was not going to let Sonata overtake her, thought Sunset, smugly grinning at the wheel.

The race continued, and five laps later, Sunset crossed the finish line in first, with Sonata behind her. The others came in close behind. They all pulled into the pit area and got out of their vehicles. Thankfully, despite the multiple spin-outs in the first few laps, there was no damage to any of the cars, except for the fact that they were extremely dusty, as if they had been through the Dakar Rally, and the stone chips on the front bumpers.

Flash came over to talk to them, before the next group was going to head out. "Okay, I see you were able to get the hint, and make it through this course. See, since you were able to handle your cars well on dirt, now, you should be able to handle them easily on asphalt. Now, the second group is gonna head out." said Flash. The second group included Powerslide. The racers headed out, and since they had seen how their friends had done it, they also used drifting to their advantage, and were able to get the hang of the whole track a few laps in. However, on the 10th lap, disaster struck.

The guy in front of Powerslide, driving the white GT3, which was now brown from all the dust on it, attempted to take a turn while still keeping Powerslide behind him. During this, he somehow managed to snap oversteer, before he could countersteer for a drift, and ending up ramming a barricade at around 40 miles per hour, causing heavy damage to the left rear of the car, damaging the rear bumper, taillight, damaging the suspension, and bending the wheel. The car went on three wheels for a second on impact, before it came back down. The trainee was protected by his gear, but the car wasn't in such good condition.

"Well, that was a silly, stupid AVOIDABLE mistake! You're going home!" shouted Flash, through his bullhorn, as track safety ran to the trainee's car, which he was getting out of, a little shaken, but unhurt. The race was temporarily stopped, as the safety crews went to get the wrecked car off the track. While this was going on, when Powerslide pulled in, he and Sunset quickly began chatting. In fact, Sunset hadn't admitted yet, but she was starting to have feelings for Powerslide. Despite the fact that he was 19, and she was 17, she felt a strong feeling of attraction towards him.

While the crashed car was towed off the track, Flash told the others to get ready and back in their cars, because once some of the remaining debris was removed, they would be back on the track. The second that happened, he shouted to the trainees to drive out, which Powerslide and his group did. Within seconds, the competition was re-engaged, albeit minus that one trainee.

The remaining two groups proceeded to finish off their laps without much incident, and soon, all of the remaining cars came in to pit. Comet Flash came out for another talk. "Well, I guess you're now able to control your cars on dirt. Remember, drifting could come in handy any time in a race. It could save you on the track, at any time. You could use it to recover from spins, overtake opponents, avoid crashes, and what not. Plus, you can use it in any form of motorsport, no matter what you drive. Cars, motorcycles, trucks, even go-karts can be drifted, so you never know when drifting could help you. Okay, we're heading back to the main center now. Another on the dirt, and then, we'll start doing laps on the track." said Comet Flash, as he directed the staff to load the cars back onto the flatbed trucks that had brought them here.

It was now almost 2:30pm, as the trainees all hopped in the two minivans that had brought them here, and a minute later, they were heading back to Road America, a short drive away. The conversations ensued, and throughout this time, Sunset kept giving Sonata smug grins, having finally crossed the finish line ahead of her. During this, she was also chatting with Powerslide. Sunset had to copy her school notes when she got back, now that school had restarted. Thankfully, her friends were sending Sunset notes and homework.

The vans arrived back at Road America at almost 3:00pm. Everyone got out and went straight back to their rooms, where Sunset got to work on her schoolwork. Once she was done, she and Powerslide decided to chat for a little bit. The trainees usually were allowed to walk around in their free time, so they could get some fresh air. At around 5:30pm, they chatted, Powerslide suddenly said, "Sunset, I wanted to admit something to you."

"What? What is it?" asked Sunset to Powerslide.

"I wasn't always this cool, nice guy that you see. I used to be real messed up, until four years ago." said Powerslide.

"What do you mean?" asked Sunset.

"My childhood was real rough. My mom left when I was five, and my dad... well, all he was was a drunkard. He was addicted to the bottle. He beat me and my older sister in his drunken rages, all the time. He also sexually abused my sister." said Powerslide, trying hard to fight back the bad memories.

Sunset was shocked at this. She couldn't believe this. Was Powerslide even telling her the truth?

"I assure you. This is the truth. Do you see this scar?" asked Powerslide, rolling up his shirt's sleeve, and showing Sunset a huge scar on it. It looked like the scars of pirates in movies, except it was on his arm, not his eye. Sunset nodded at that. "My father did this to me when I was just 10 years old. When I refused to go and get him a fresh bottle of beer from the fridge, he angrily pinned me to the floor, took a knife, and..." Powerslide hesitated to speak more.

"Oh my God! Powerslide, how could your father have done such things to you?" asked Sunset.

"I don't know, and I don't care. All I cared about was getting out of that house. When I was 13, me and my older sister, who was 16 at the time, ran away. I ended up living with my 18-year-old pothead friend, since I had no one else to go to. I did go to school, but didn't really pay attention in class. I ended up being a junkie, until I was 15. That was when the incident that changed my life occurred." said Powerslide, holding back tears.

"What happened, Powerslide?" asked Sunset.

"You know how I said my friend had a GT86 that got totalled, right? Well, I caused that wreck. So, me, and my friend, while high on pot, decided to go on a drive. During that drive, we encountered some guy in a Charger, and in our drug-induced haze, we decided to race him. During that race, we approached an intersection at around 90 to 100 miles per hour. The Charger guy, being sensible, slowed down. Us on the other hand, sped into the intersection at 94 miles per hour, just as a minivan had entered and was making a turn, since it had a green light." said Powerslide, still trying to hold back the tears.

"Oh, no..." said Sunset, guessing what had happened.

"We killed someone that night. One of the passengers in the minivan. A little girl. She was just 4 years old." said Powerslide, sobbing, reliving his bad memories all over again, as Sunset hugged the 19 year old.

"What happened to you after that?" asked Sunset.

"Well, my friend, he got sentenced to 40 years in prison. Me, on the other hand, the judge saw potential in me. She felt I could redeem myself, become a good person once more. She told me personally, that she was not willing to give up on a 15 year old boy. For three years, I was in rehab, and that is where I got into video games and simracing. I got when I was 18, my identity was changed, and I got myself a job, as well as a place to live. I play RaceWorld today, to remind me of what happened throughout my life. I always remember the name of the little girl who lost her life that night. Her name was Emerald Aura." said Powerslide, a little composed now, but tears still coming out of his eyes.

"I know how you feel, Powerslide. I also went through something very similar. I now feel like telling you my story as well." said Sunset.

"How bad can it be, compared to mine?" asked Powerslide.

"Well, it is quite bad, but I want you to swear this to secrecy. This may sound like nonsense, but trust me when I say it is totally real."

"Okay, what's your past?" asked Powerslide. Sunset began to tell her story, and after she was done, Powerslide seemed a little astounded. "So... you're actually an alien from another planet, temporarily turned yourself into a monster, was a bully, redeemed yourself, and you stopped multiple interdimensional magical threats from coming to our world? And you're saying that Sonata is a monster from that same planet whom you defeated? That sounds a little hard to believe."

"I know, it does, but this geode is proof." said Sunset, showing Powerslide the geode she had gotten at Camp Everfree, which granted Sunset her mind-reading powers.

"Wow, so this small gem gives you the power to read someone's mind?" asked Powerslide, in amazement.

"Yep, it does. I'm going to have to prove it to you by reading yours. Whatever happens, do not tell this to anyone." said Sunset, as she placed her hand on Powerslide's head, and willed her powers to activate. Her eyes glowed white, spooking Powerslide a little, as she began to see into Powerslide's mind. Five seconds later, she was in one of Powerslide's memories, watching it as if it were a movie. As she looked, she saw a dark blue Toyota GT86 tearing through city streets at high speeds, side by side with an orange Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat. The GT86 was definitely modified, as it had a carbon fiber hood.

As the vision shifted to inside the GT86, she could see a younger Powerslide, along with an older boy of 18, with cyan skin and red hair. This was probably the friend Powerslide had mentioned. Both of them were laughing, and Powerslide was shouting, "Come on! Smoke that guy! You said this thing has 350 horsepower!" Their voices were slurred, and their eyes were red, as if they were under the influence. The two cars were roaring towards an intersection, just as the light turned red.

On seeing that, the Charger driver instantly hit the brakes, and began slowing the muscle car down. The GT86, on the other hand, continued to barrel towards the intersection. The two boys were laughing, shouting how the Charger driver had chickened out, not noticing the minivan in front of them. They did notice it, but it was too late. She watched horrified as the GT86 slammed into the rear-left side of the minivan. The impact obliterated the front of the GT86, and the minivan's side. It also tossed the minivan away from the impact site, due to the high speed of the GT86. The GT86 continued on and hit a tree, airbags deployed.

As the vision shifted to the minivan, Sunset was horrified, and wanted to see no more of this vision, as she saw blood spattered all over its rear seats, and the mortally injured little girl in the van. Suddenly, the vision shifted, to another one. This showed a much younger Powerslide, around the age of 10.

His sister was also there. She looked a lot like a female version of Powerslide himself. They were standing in a rather dilapidated house, along with their drunkard father, who was whipping Powerslide with a belt, scolding him for not getting him another bottle of beer from the fridge. Sunset watched horrified as more visions from Powerslide's past played in her brain, until she purposely made the visions stop, as she could take no more.

"Oh My God, Powerslide... I couldn't believe that was your past! How could your dad have done such cruel things to you?" asked Sunset.

"Mom was the only thing preventing Dad from turning everything on us. When she left, it opened the gates to abuse us. I thank my stars that we both ran away. I still remember the entirety of the night I stepped into that car." said Powerslide.

"Powerslide, that crash was never your fault. Your friend made you step into that car that night, and you were under the influence of drugs. He caused the death of that little girl, and was appropriately sentenced for it." said Sunset, comforting him.

"I still haven't paid. I've felt that I didn't deserve the pity of that judge." said Powerslide.

"Look, Powerslide, or whatever your old name was, she knew that it wasn't your fault. She knew you could still turn your life around. I mean, look at you now! You're training to be a real racing driver!" said Sunset, trying to lift his spirits up.

"I know, but still, part of me has always felt guilty. I mean, you've also managed to turn your life around, after you turned yourself into a demon, and almost destroyed the world. But still, you didn't kill anyone. I did." said Powerslide.

"Look, Powerslide, it wasn't your fault. You have to let go of the past. Trust me, it is the only way." said Sunset. "Let it go, like smoke in the wind."

"I guess so." said Powerslide, taking a deep breath, trying to let go of the bad memories of his past. As he breathed in and breathed out. Sunset held his hand, to calm him down if he got nervous. As Powerslide let it all go, he could feel a heavy weight lift off his chest. He hadn't slept peacefully since he was a child. Maybe he would be able to finally sleep peacefully now. Tears, this time of happiness, began welling in his eyes. "Thank you. I needed that."

"Look, don't hesitate to talk me if you ever need anything. Also, by the way, I may or may not be in love with you." said Sunset.

"To tell you the truth, I also have had feelings for you ever since I first met you in person." said Powerslide, smiling now, leaning over to kiss Sunset. The kiss was passionate, one only true lovers could have. Incredibly, no one had seen this whole conversation happen. As the duo got up after that, Sunset asked him a question.

"You know, you never told me about what happened to your sister."

"Well, after we ran away from home, we lost contact with each other, until that accident. She used to visit me all the time when she found out I was in rehab, and was the first person to meet me after I was released. She helped me out with getting a new job and everything. Today, she's working on getting a law degree." said Powerslide.

"I see. Was she happy when you got into RaceWorld Academy?" asked Sunset, as they began heading back to the Academy.

"Well, she told me to take the opportunity, as it could give me a pretty bright future." said Powerslide, smiling a little now. As the two lovers walked back to the RaceWorld Academy building, they knew that their future would be bright. One day, somehow, they would be together, no matter what. Hopefully, they would also be able to accomplish their dreams of becoming real racing drivers while doing so.

Training (Part 3)

20TH NOVEMBER 2023

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

It was 7:00am in Wisconsin. It was another exciting day for the remaining 5 trainees. They would be doing more laps of Road America today. They had started the previous day. After their final session on the rallycross track on the 18th, Comet Flash disqualified 3 of the 13 remaining trainees, saying that their performance was not up to standards. After their first track day the previous day, he had disqualified 3 more trainees for the same reason. The previous night, he had disqualified 2 more trainees for the same reason as well. Thankfully, Sunset, Sonata, and Powerslide were not among those disqualified.

Ever since Sunset had told Powerslide about the past between her and Sonata, Powerslide had been a little wary of Sonata now that he knew she was a monster from another world. Also, the relationship between Sunset and Powerslide had gotten more serious, but not fully serious yet, as they wanted for Sunset to turn 18 first. As for Sunset, her school stuff was going well, since they hadn't had any tests in sometime, and they wouldn't have any major tests until next month, so all she had to do was notes and homework, which Principal Celestia was allowing her to email to all her teachers.

Today, they would learn some more track racing techniques, but instead of doing it on the simulator, they would do it on the actual track. Their track time yesterday resembled the scenes at track days held by car companies, as Comet Flash was checking how well they drove on a track in real life. This would be the ultimate test for the trainees, to see how good they could be, ahead of their graduation at the end of the month. It was hard to believe it had taken them less than a month to learn and practice real racing techniques on a real track, thanks to Comet Flash's very intense training regime.

This would be the ultimate test of all of their skills, and it would be the stepping stone to their graduation, which would occur at the end of the month. The graduation would be a race, which would test all of their skills, of the 5 drivers who would remain by then. Only one would win, and that winner would be the person who would drive on the team of Thunderbolt Motorsports.

The 5 remaining trainees first did their morning jog, then, had some breakfast, played the impulse game again to get their reflexes ready for the track, and then, at 9:00am, headed towards the pit area to hit the track. The car that had been involved in the wreck the other day still hadn't been fixed, and was currently was sitting at a Porsche service center waiting for parts, so Porsche had delivered a substitute vehicle.

As they arrived at the pits, they saw that Comet Flash was not there. That was surprising. Usually, he was always at a place on time. The trainees were worried about why he hadn't showed up yet, even if he could be a hard-ass sometimes. That was when they heard the roar of an engine. An aircraft, probably, since an airport that served private jets and small planes was nearby. That was when they heard a chopping sound, and the engine roar was getting louder, as if it were flying really low. It was probably a helicopter, going by the noise, but why was it flying so low?

That was when they saw it. A helicopter was approaching the track, as if it were about to land. It was getting louder as it approached, but the trainees didn't cover their ears, as they were now used to loud sounds from sitting in the cars. They watched as the helicopter descended lower, and touched down on the track. As the helicopter's engine was shut off, and its rotor blades stopped spinning, Comet Flash climbed out of the helicopter. That was a relatively anti-climatic entrance, though the trainees, as Comet Flash walked from the helicopter to the pit area.

"Well, I'm guessing you're all wondering why I've showed up in a helicopter, huh?" asked Comet Flash.

"For dramatic effect?" asked one trainee sarcastically.

"Does this look like a movie set to you? No, it's to monitor you guys from the air, at the speeds you are doing." said Flash. "You're also going to have to learn more techniques today. In a race, you can't always be faster than your opponents, but you can be smarter than them. One of those methods is be letting your opponent do all the work for you, by drafting. All you have to do is just stay close behind their car, and when the slipstream from their car gives you more speed, you overtake when the window opens. But for today's track day, I'm going to give you a little challenge." said Comet Flash, as the roars of engines could be heard.

As the trainees wondered what it was, two beautiful hypercars, a black Porsche Carrera GT, and a yellow McLaren P1 drove into the pit lane. Seeing the P1 made the trainees' eyes look like glass, as they admired the two machines in front of them, built for speed. As they fawned over the lovely cars, their drivers got out. The driver of the Carrera GT was a young man, in his early thirties, with black hair, and red skin. The driver of the P1 was a woman, also in her thirties, with gray skin and blond hair. She reminded Sunset of Derpy, but without crossed eyes.

"Alright, guys! Meet my old friends, Straight Arrow, and Electric Harmony. These two were my best friends back when I still raced. They don't race anymore, but Harmony here is a commentator for Moon Sports Network, which broadcasts a lot of FIA races, and they will also be broadcasting our series. Arrow, on the other hand, now works as a test driver for a car company, you can guess which one." said Flash, introducing them.

"Well, kids, we're here to help you out with training. We're going to be basically simulating your opponents in this track day, and you have to try to beat us, even if we have more powerful cars. Although the cars you will be competing against won't have KERS systems, mine has, so that's an advantage you'll have to beat." said Electric Harmony.

"Basically, we'll be like sparring partners you have to beat. The thing is, we'll head out first, and once we're around 30 seconds ahead of you, you will be sent out, and you'll have to catch up to us and beat us in just 3 or 4 laps. It'll basically show us how to catch up to your rivals in a short period of time, and how you can recover from something like a bad pit stop or a penalty." said Straight Arrow.

"That's the plan, Arrow, that's the plan. I will be monitoring you trainees from the helicopter, which will have cameras trained on you and a radio setup to talk to you, so I will be chewing you out if you make a mistake." said Flash, as he began walking towards the helicopter. "Alright, I'm gonna have to get in and have the pilot take off, so that Arrow and Harmony can get on track. I'll be seeing you out there!" said Flash, running to the helicopter, and signalling to the pilot to start it up, which he did the second Flash climbed in and closed the door.

As the helicopter's engines spooled up to full power, and it rose off the ground, Harmony and Arrow ran to their hypercars, and started up their engines. Once the helicopter had cleared the track, they headed on to the track to begin their laps, as the first trainees began running to their cars, eager to race the two beautiful machines. As they waited eagerly to hit the track, they watched as the two beautiful hypercars sped down the main straight of Road America, engines roaring, which sounded like music to their ears.

The trainees were soon in their cars, waiting at the exit of the pit lane, to get on the track, as Arrow and Harmony continued their lap. The second they hit the halfway point, the trainees began revving their engines, as they would head out in 30 seconds. As that signal came, the pit lane lights turned green, and all of the trainees headed out, accelerating the second they hit the main track.

They were pushed back in their seats, as the cars began accelerating down the main straight, aiming to beat the two hypercars, which were currently way ahead of them. They had put their feet down, intending to beat the two veteran racers. This felt like a very important school test, albeit one that involved driving racing cars instead of writing a few pages. They were really intending to beat the two veteran racers, and soon, the gap had reduced to just 28.5 seconds. However, they still had a bit to go before catching up to the P1 and Carrera GT. They could also, in their rear view mirrors, see the helicopter following them.

This was a tougher race than normal, as all of the trainees wanted that first place finish. None of them were willing to give up their positions either, so it was a huge high-speed battle as they sped towards the hypercars. The battle was on, as they used the techniques taught to them by Comet Flash. As they sped through Turn 3, heading into the second straight, Sunset who had started in last place, which was 5th, moved up to 4th place, by using drafting.

They went into Turn 4 and into the Morane Sweep, and on Turn 5, Sunset drifted onto the inside, forcing the 3rd place guy into the outside, and overtook him, as she sped off, towards Sonata and Powerslide, who were in 1st and 2nd places respectively. The battle was on between the two, with neither of them willing to give up their positions. They were battling it out, as if they were in a real race.

On the final turn of the first lap, the gap between them and the hypercars had reduced further, to 21.5 seconds. As they entered this final turn, Powerslide got ready to overtake Sonata. Just as he was about to do so, Sonata dangerously cut Powerslide off, causing Powerslide to almost spin his 911 out. Sunset then realised Sonata was willing to do anything to get that first place finish, so she had to be careful, as they entered the second lap.

As they passed the main straight once more, the gap reduced to 21 seconds. However, the hypercars were still ahead of them, despite their best efforts to catch them. The battle was getting harder. As they entered Turn 7, Sunset and Powerslide finally managed to gain on Sonata, but however, just as they finished the overtake, they slowed down, allowing Sonata to catch back up. However, as they entered the Hurry Downs straight, Sunset and Powerslide sped off a little bit, but Sonata was hot on their rear bumpers, trying to find a spot to overtake.

As they entered the Hurry Downs, Sonata was weaving behind Sunset and Powerslide's cars, trying to overtake, despite the fact that the Hurry Downs couldn't really hold more than two cars at a time. As Sonata continued pushing on Sunset's side, she purposely bumped Sunset's car. At first, Sunset thought it was an accidental bump, but that doubt was cast aside when Sonata purposely tried to push Sunset off the track. That was when she heard Comet Flash barking over their radio systems. "Hey, Miss Dusk, stop trying to wreck your fellow trainee! That's illegal, you know?"

"I don't care! She ruined my life! She deserves to lose this!" shouted Sonata, bumping hard into Sunset's car again, this time causing Sunset's car to spin.

"Look, Miss Dusk, I don't know what happened between you two, but on the track, you HAVE to put personal differences aside, and focus only on a race! You're out for the remainder of this session for endangering a trainee's life, GET IN THE PITS, NOW!" shouted Comet Flash, as Sunset attempted to recover her car from the spin, which she successfully did. However, the spin had dropped her back to 3rd, behind Powerslide and Sonata, who was reducing her speed after she got ordered to pull into the pits, now that Sunset was temporarily behind them.

As the battle continued, now with Sonata out, the gap between the racers and the hypercars had reduced to 19 seconds, as they headed towards Turn 12. By the time they reached the Road America Straight, where Sonata pulled into the pits, out of the session. As they flashed by the main straight, entering their 3rd lap, Sunset could see the blue-haired girl in the pits, hanging her head in shame, now disqualified from the session.

The remaining trainees flashed by as well, the gap now back at 20.5 seconds, as the hypercars were more powerful on the straight sections of the track. The next one minute of the race was spent with Sunset in 1st and Powerslide in 2nd as the trainees attempted to catch up to the two hypercars, which were starting to suffer tire wear. The gap began reducing, to 19.5, to 18, to 17.5, to 16, and to 15 seconds, as they progressed through Road America's multiple turns.

In fact, on the end of the Morraine Sweep, the Carrera GT was visible for a second, before they took the turn. On Turn 9, the gap went down further, to 13.5 seconds, and then to 12.5 at Turn 11. Finally, on Turn 12, they could begin to see the two hypercars clearly in their windshields, as the gap reduced to less than 10 seconds. The final lap would be the lap where they would hopefully beat the hypercars.

As they reached Turn 14, the final turn before the Road America Straight, the gap reduced to 8.5 seconds, but as they all hit the straight, it increased again, to 10 seconds. However, despite entering the final lap, the trainees would not give up. The gap once again reduced, to 9 seconds, as they entered Turn 1. Over the next 4 turns, the trainees could see the rear of the Carrera GT getting closer and closer to them, and that of the P1, which was in front of the Carrera GT.

Finally, on Turn 5, the gap between them and the two hypercars reduced to 2.5 seconds. On seeing this, Straight Arrow, who was driving the Carrera GT, began driving more defensively, to stop the trainees from overtaking him. Electric Harmony braked relatively early on Turn 6, to recharge the KERS system of her P1. However, despite Arrow's skilled moves, the Carrera GT's tires had badly worn down, and he began sliding a little. The trainees took this chance to catch Arrow on Turn 6, dive bombing and forcing him to the outside, finally overtaking him. Harmony would be harder, since her car was much faster, with the P1 having more than 900 horsepower, compared to the 500 horsepower 911 GT3s driven by the trainees.

She was also doing good on her defensive moves, but was also braking relatively early, to charge the KERS system in her car. That would be what the trainees would use to try and overtake her. On Turn 12, that chance came. She braked a little too early this time, earlier than planned, and the trainees used this chance to overtake the McLaren P1. Since her car had a twin-turbo hybrid V8, it would suffer a little turbo lag, while the trainees had cars with NA engines, so they were easily able to gain some speed a little faster. On the Road America Straight, Harmony's P1 did gain a little, but not much before the trainees' cars crossed the finish lines first.

As the trainees began their cooldown before they arrived in the pits, on Turn 3, as Sunset braked, her brakes did not seem to want to engage, and even though she attempted a drift, she couldn't do it without her brakes working, and Sunset's Porsche crashed into a track barrier. As the track officials ran to the car, coming with fire extinguishers and everything to get Sunset out of the car if she was injured. However, as that was not so, as Sunset was uninjured, and got out of the car herself, as Comet Flash's voice came through her radio. "What happened, Miss Shimmer? Why did you wreck into that barrier? That was totally avoidable!"

"No, Comet Flash, the brakes didn't engage. They were glazed, and I couldn't drift without my brakes working properly, and I ended up hitting the barrier!" said Sunset, through her radio.

"Okay, I'll have the mechanics check the car, but I'm not sure if gamer girls like you or Miss Dusk are built to handle real racecars. Head back to the training center, and I'll let you know what caused the accident once the mechanics have had a good look at the car." said Comet Flash, mockingly, as a disappointed Sunset hopped into the medical car of the track, in this case, a Chevrolet Colorado ZR2, which would take her back to the main training center. It was now 9:15am. As she arrived there, she could see the trainees' cars, along with those of Arrow and Harmony pulling in, as Comet Flash's helicopter landed on the Road America Straight.

"Okay, you trainees did well to overcome the challenges of this course. You successfully caught up to Harmony and Arrow's cars, despite them being 30 seconds ahead of you, and having much more powerful vehicles. You all did well, except for you, Miss Dusk." said Comet Flash, as Sonata again lowered her head in shame of being called out for trying to wreck Sunset. "Dismissed for today, once that last car is fixed, we'll hit the track again."

As Comet Flash went off to talk to Arrow and Harmony, the trainees all headed back to the RaceWorld Academy center, where the 5 trainees wanted to know why Sonata had attempted to pull a dirty move on fellow trainee, and why Sunset had managed to get in a crash, being such a good driver. Sunset told them all that she felt the brakes were glazed. Sonata on the other hand, refused to talk to her fellow trainees for some reason, and went crying to her bed in their room. That was odd.

Later, as Sunset was sitting in the cafeteria, hoping she wasn't going to get disqualified, Comet Flash came in. Sunset just hoped fervently that she wasn't getting disqualified, as Comet Flash sat down in front of her. "Well, you were right." said Comet Flash, which surprised everybody. "We checked the car. The brakes were indeed glazed, from all of that hard driving you guys have been doing lately. How did you know that?"

"I'm not sure, to be honest. I've worked on my own car multiple times, but this time, it's as if I just... knew." said Sunset.

"Well, I can tell that what you're saying is the truth, but, the thing is, only a true racer would have such sharp instincts, to know something like that without even seeing what condition the brakes were in. You have something in you. Don't let those skills go to waste." said Comet Flash, as he got up, and walked off. The trainees, including Sunset, were all surprised by that. They thought Sunset would have been disqualified for crashing one of their cars, but he had let her off easy. Plus, he had been relatively nice to her, something that he hadn't really been to the other trainees.

As the trainees headed back to their rooms after dinner, surprised by the outcome of the conversation, they saw Sonata, still in her bed. She was definitely sleeping, but she hadn't come to dinner at all. She was definitely alive, as her chest was rising and falling, indicating she was breathing normally. However, they saw that her pillow was soaked. Dried tears, probably. As the trainees went to sleep, their hopes were higher than ever, as graduation rapidly approached.

Graduation

30TH NOVEMBER 2023

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

It was 7:00am in Wisconsin. It was a special and stressful day for the trainees, as today was their final day at RaceWorld Academy. It was their graduation day. The 5 remaining trainees would do one last training race, with 80 laps, to simulate a real one, with pit stops and everything. The FIA had increased the number of laps to be done from 50 to 80, to 70 to 100 laps, like it was done in Super GT, basically making the Road Car World Championship an international version of Super GT.

Whoever won today's graduation race would go on to race as the second driver of Thunderbolt Motorsports. That was the ultimate goal here for everyone. There would be official FIA examiners presiding over this race, which did stress them out a little.

In the last few days, they had been hitting the track, the simulators, and the BATAK Board more than ever. They had also been practicing good pit stops, as well as learning about tire changes, racing strategies, tire compounds, and other such things. They had also learnt quite a bit about racing history, which was relatively easy. Somehow, during all this, with the help of her friends, Sunset had managed to keep up with school and homework. She was also surprised by the fact that Principal Celestia was fine with this, considering she had been absent for almost a month now.

During all of this, Sonata Dusk somehow hadn't been kicked out of the program, despite attempting to force Sunset into a crash, after a talk with her, Comet Flash had let her stay in RaceWorld Academy. Sunset was hoping to take that spot on the Thunderbolt Motorsports team, as she could finally make history, by being one of the first woman drivers in a big FIA-approved racing series, that too, one who had gotten experience in professional racing only from video games.

The relationship between Sunset and Powerslide had also gotten hotter, but it hadn't gone sexual yet, as they wanted to wait for Sunset to turn 18 first, before they went into a serious relationship. Also, they were keeping their relationship a total secret until then.

Meanwhile, as for Sonata, she had stopped spending time with the other trainees like she had used to. In fact, apart from dinner and training sessions, she was always in her bed, either crying on her pillow or looking at pictures on her phone. Sunset wondered why that was so. As she came back up to the trainees' sleeping quarters after her jog for a quick energy drink, she noticed Sonata crying on her bed again. This time, Sunset decided to figure out what was up.

She went up to Sonata and tapped her on the back. "What's going on? Why haven't you spent as much time with your friends?" asked Sunset.

"Oh, yeah? You ruined the life of me and my sisters, you bitch!" shouted Sonata.

"Ahem, you were the ones who possessed a whole school just so that you could become popular, and make yourself famous!"

"Okay, that was so that we could get our power back and rebuild our lives, like how I am doing for mine now! If it weren't for you, Aria would still be alive!"

"Wait, what? Aria's dead?!" asked a horrified Sunset. That was why Sonata had been crying recently, realised Sunset. Something had happened to Aria Blaze, one of the three siren sisters.

"Oh, don't you know? She couldn't take being defeated by you and the loss of her magic, so six months ago, Aria took a gun to her head, and ended it all with a literal bang!" shouted Sonata, tears starting to streak down her face. This shocked Sunset, the fact that Aria Blaze had ended her own life like that.

"But why did she take her own life?"

"Oh, I just told you! She couldn't handle everything you all did to her, and after our last performance, on auto-tune by the way, at the Starswirled Music Festival, she fell into drugs, and eventually, it all got to her, and she ended it all!"

"Well, you do realise that it was your fault that she got into all that? You could have stopped her, and she would be alive today!"

"Well, we tried, okay! But she was too addicted, that me and Adagio had to abandon our own sister! It all started because of YOU!" shouted Sonata, as she burst into tears, thinking about her sister. Sunset wondered how bad it had gotten, and began activating her powers, touching Sonata's shoulder in a comforting position, and just as the blue-haired girl turned to ask what Sunset was doing, Sunset's eyes began glowing white, shocking her.

Meanwhile, Sunset began to see the memories faced by Sonata and the Dazzlings, after they were defeated by the Rainbooms in the Battle of the Bands. It showed memories from Sonata, as they lost their popularity, and had to pay for their school by getting jobs. It showed scenes of Sonata getting a job at the mechanic's, like flashbacks in the beginning of a TV show's episode. It showed her getting a ride in her boss's heavily modified Nissan GT-R, as she had mentioned to Sunset on their first day at RaceWorld Academy.

However, it also showed some more awful things. It showed Adagio Dazzle and Sonata both confronting Aria Blaze, who seemed to be looking worse for wear, seeming extremely agitated, and her once neat hair all grizzled, as if she had just gotten out of bed. It also showed the two sisters visiting Aria, who seemed to look in worse condition with every visit. Then, the ultimate flashback came. It showed Sonata and Adagio knocking on Aria's door multiple times, but Aria did not show up. Eventually, they just kicked the door open, and the sight that greeted them was horrifying.

Aria was lying on the ground, blood flowing from a wound in her head, from which pieces of her brain matter had also come out, staining the rug, and the clothes on her now-lifeless body, as a shocked Adagio and Sonata began crying, seeing the dead body of their sister. The flashback then shifted to a graveyard, with Adagio, Sonata, and a few other people standing, all wearing black clothes, as Aria's coffin was lowered into the ground. Everyone was crying, especially Adagio and Sonata. Then, the flashback ended, with Sunset staring at a surprised and shocked Sonata.

"What happened there? Your eyes were glowing as if they were in a horror movie!" said Sonata, shocked at what she had just seen. Don't tell me you somehow took our magic..." said Sonata, as Sunset began speaking, cutting her off.

"Look, Sonata, I just got a look into your memories, that's all. I didn't read your mind or anything of that sort, I just got a good look at your memories." explained Sunset.

"Wait, what? When did you get those powers in the first place, and what did you see?" asked Sonata.

"Well, I'll tell you later how I got my powers, it's a long story. As for what I saw, I saw all that your and your sisters went through after the Battle of the Bands. I saw also you finding Aria's body after she..." Sunset paused, as tears began welling in Sonata's eyes, as she remembered the day Aria had taken her own life, and the funeral. "Look, Aria's death wasn't either of our faults. You tried to get her out of the state she was in, but she wasn't willing to listen to you all. She did it to herself."

"Still, I was her sister. I should have protected her that day." said Sonata, starting to cry again.

"Look, it was never your fault. You did everything to help Aria, and you were there for her in her time of need. Your past is not today." said Sunset, trying to encourage her former enemy, to get over the past, and embrace the present.

"Why are you trying to help me anyways?" asked Sonata, wondering why her former enemy was trying to help her out, considering they had ruined her reputation and brainwashed all her allies.

"Well, everyone should have a second chance. I personally was an enemy and a bully to the whole school myself, until a certain pony princess gave me a second chance, and now, look at me. You can do the same thing. You can turn everything around for yourself, without doing any bad things." said Sunset, trying to encourage Sonata.

"I guess I can. I guess we'll put our enmity aside now, shall we?" asked Sonata, a smile returning to her face, as she offered a hand to Sunset to shake on it. Sunset instantly grabbed her hand, and shook it, ending the enmity between the two. "Come on, let's get ready, I'm beating you today."

"Not if I cross the finish line first!" said Sunset, as the two ran to the cafeteria for breakfast. It was now 7:20am. The race would begin at 9:00am. The FIA examiners were apparently already here, and they would be overseeing the whole race. The trainees were understandably nervous, but they were determined to do well and not embarrass themselves. It wasn't really as international of a lineup as it had been at the beginning of RaceWorld Academy. Of the remaining 5 trainees, 3 of them, Sunset, Sonata, and Powerslide, were Americans. One of the remaining trainees was from India, and the other was from South Korea.

The trainees dressed up in their racing suits, and did their pre-race preparations, before they put on their helmets and got into their cars. One of the trainees was even playing music to relax himself for the race. Then, once that was done, they put on their helmets, and headed outside to meet Comet Flash and the FIA examiners, before getting in the cars.

"Alright, welcome to your final race in training! You know the rules, I've already briefed you about it. These FIA people here will grant you your International Grade A Competition racing licences after the end of the race, if you don't mess up. Those licences will enable you to race in any series of your liking apart from Formula 1, which requires a Super Licence and a few years of racing experience. However, the only trainee who will get that spot in Thunderbolt Motorsports is whoever crosses that finish line first. Good luck to all of you." said Comet Flash, heading towards the observation area with the FIA officials, as the trainees got into their cars.

Their engines were started up, and the five Porsche 911s began driving out of the pits to begin their formation lap. It would not be like this on a real race day, where just like in Formula 1, they would start their formation lap on the real track, where everyone would be in their cars, on the side of the main track, like a race start in Le Mans. The trainees drove out onto the track, and began the formation lap. They all would start today on soft tires. All the skills they had learned from Comet Flash would be put to use here.

The cars began accelerating, but not as much as they would, once the race started. They also began weaving around the track, to try and warm up their tires, to improve the grip out on the track. The formation lap was uneventful, with not much happening at all during that, except for the racers powersliding a little to warm up the tires even more. Finally, they reached the starting line, and took up their positions.

The lights began counting down, and the engines began revving, as the trainees got ready for the start of the race that would decide their futures. It all went into slow-motion for the trainees, as the lights came on, counting down to the race start. The second the lights went out, all the cars lunged forward, as the race started, pushing the trainees back in their seats. The first few laps were relatively uneventful, except for the fact that all of the trainees were in battles with each other, to try and get that seat on the Thunderbolt Motorsports team.

Sunset, who had started in 3rd, was still there, in a battle with Cumin Masala, the Indian trainee, in 2nd place, and Sonata Dusk ahead of him. Powerslide was also up her rear bumper, with the Korean trainee, Kimchi Fire, behind him. The battle was hot for 4th place, between Powerslide and Kimchi Fire, as she was trying everything to overtake Powerslide. Eventually, on the 5th lap, she drifted around Powerslide on Turn 5, and overtook him. However, Powerslide took back 4th place on the 10th lap.

The race continued, and on the 15th lap, Sunset finally got around Cumin Masala, and got into 2nd place. The race had only just started, but it did feel a little boring for the trainees, with only 4 other cars to compete against. However, they were determined to make the most of it, as this was also a test of endurance as well as speed. The race continued, and the action was still on. On the 18th lap, Powerslide spun out due to some heat damage to his tires, and had to come in to the pits, getting medium tires to replace the soft ones which had worn out.

The remaining trainees had good tires, but were planning to do a double stint on their current tires, and let the pit crew know that they were planning to do so. The race continued well, until on lap 23, Sunset spun, as heat damage had begun to wear her tires out as well. The other trainees didn't have as much damage to their tires, but they were starting to get tire wear as well. It was soon going to be time for their first pit stop. On lap 27, everyone except Powerslide came in to pit. Everyone changed out their old sets of soft tires for a fresh set of medium tires, except for Kimchi Fire, who got hard tires instead.

As the race continued, the tires they had chosen were working very well, except for Fire, whose hard tires weren't so grippy. However, they would last quite a long time, so she wouldn't need to pit again for some time. The 3-way battle continued between Sonata, Sunset, and Cumin, with all three cars very close to each other, attempting to take each other's positions. Meanwhile, in the back, Powerslide and Kimchi were closing in on them.

On lap 32, Cumin managed to drift around Sunset at turn 6, and took back 2nd place. Sunset continued staying up Cumin's tailpipe, intent on taking the win. On lap 49, after a brief period of inactivity, some action came when Cumin locked his brakes on a turn, which gave Sunset the chance to overtake him. This was successful, and now, Sunset and Sonata were in a battle for first place. The positions kept changing every few laps, and sometimes every few corners, making the race more interesting.

Finally, on lap 55, everyone, except for Kimchi Fire, pitted again, this time for another fresh set of medium tires. Kimchi Fire, however, was continuing on her hard tires, which were holding up pretty well. However, now the other 4 trainees had the advantage, since they had fresher tires. The battle continued between Sonata and Sunset, who had now dropped to 2nd and 3rd place respectively while in the pits. However, soon, Kimchi was in last place, overtaken by the others, due to tire wear. Finally, on lap 58, Kimchi pitted, for a fresh set of mediums as well.

As the end of the race neared, the battles started getting fiercer. Powerslide was pushed down to last place by Kimchi and Cumin, who were fighting for 3rd, but he came back with a vengeance, pushing Kimchi back to last. On lap 72, everyone pitted, putting on their previous sets of soft tires, so they could run the final 8 laps. During lap 75, Sunset finally used drifting to overtake Sonata, going into 1st place. However, Sonata was not willing to let the victory go, and she kept trying to overtake Sunset, even as Sunset began blocking her. Meanwhile, Powerslide had successfully pushed into 3rd, and he was now riding Sonata's rear bumper.

As the trainees entered the final lap, Sunset was in 1st, with Sonata and Powerslide right behind her, and Cumin and Kimchi in 4th and 5th. This was it. The one that would decide their future, thought Sunset, as she sped out of Turn 1. At Turn 3, Sunset using drifting to gain ahead of her opponents, before speeding through Turn 3, towards Turn 4 and the Moraine Sweep.

As they approached the final turn before the Road America Straight, Sonata caught up to Sunset, and both cars were side-by-side, as they entered the Road America Straight, speeding towards the finish line. This was going to be close, thought Sunset, as she tried everything to gain on Sonata, speeding towards the waving checkered flag. As the two cars crossed the finish line, almost together, the trainees wondered who had won. Was it Sunset or was it Sonata? As the winner's name came up on the big screens that would be used for the spectators, who were not present today, Powerslide began smiling.

Sunset had done it. She had taken first, and would now be the second driver for Thunderbolt Motorsports in the first season of the FIA Road Car World Championship. For Sunset, it was as if all of her dreams had come true. She had done it. She was finally going to be a real racing driver. She was giddy with excitement, as the drivers all pulled their cars into the pits, at exactly 12:10pm. The second she got out, everyone was clapping for her, even her fellow trainees, the FIA representatives, and Comet Flash. Among those approaching was Soaring Surfer. "Well done, Miss Shimmer! Welcome... to Thunderbolt Motorsports!" shouted Surfer happily, as Sunset began a victory dance in joy.

At that, all of the trainees came together, in a big group hug, congratulating each other. That was when the FIA representatives came forward. "Well, trainees, we see you have done well. We will be granting you all your racing licences on one condition. You must finish at least one race in the top 5, within your first five races." said the FIA representative, icily. "If you can manage it, that is." said the representative, chuckling a little.

Despite the trainees, now racers, annoyed at that, they did not show it. Comet Flash then came up to then. "Welcome to the world of professional racing. You're gonna have to do a lot to prove that you belong out there. Trust me, it's going to be hard. But I'll give you a break for now. For the rest of the day, go celebrate and enjoy a little. You're all heading home tomorrow." said Comet Flash, casually dismissing everyone, as they all ran to celebrate and pack up their things. They had all done it. For Sunset, it was even more, as she was going to be on the global stage. This would be hard, being a girl racer, but it would also probably be worth it, thought Sunset, as she, Sonata, Powerslide, Cumin, and Kimchi all headed off to enjoy their final day at Road America.

Calm Before the Storm

3RD NOVEMBER 2023

------B-202, SUNNY HEIGHTS, CANTERLOT CITY------

It was 11:00am now in Canterlot City. Sunset Shimmer was at her home. She had returned from Road America on Nightmare Night, after finally getting that spot on Thunderbolt Motorsports as their second driver in the FIA Road Car World Championship. Sunset was extremely excited, but she was extremely bored right now, despite it being a Saturday morning. So far, the public and other racing teams did not know the results of RaceWorld Academy. That would be revealed soon. Today, Sunset was catching on some of the work she had missed over the last month at RaceWorld Academy.

As she was writing down some of the notes on Thermodynamics that she had missed, she heard a knock on her door. Sunset wondered who it was. None of her friends were coming by, and no deliveries were scheduled as of now. She still talked with the trainees from RaceWorld Academy, especially Powerslide and Sonata. However, they didn't live anywhere near Canterlot City, thought Sunset, as she walked to the front door, and looked through the peephole.

Who was outside the door shocked here. It was Soaring Surfer and Comet Flash. Why were they here? They knew her address alright, but why were they at her house, with no reason, without calling? Sunset wondered why, as she opened the door to let the two in. "Ah, Sunset! I'm sorry to come to your house announced like this, but we need to talk." said Surfer.

"Why? What is this about?" asked a confused Sunset.

"Well, there are some changes in the racing calendar. Originally, there were planned to be just 18 races this season. But now, that number has risen to 21, so you will have to be prepared. But that's not what we're here to talk about. We're here to talk about something else entirely. It's about how you will be treated on a real racetrack." said Comet Flash.

"Why? I know I will face some criticism, being a girl, and a gamer, but is it that bad?" asked Sunset.

"Well, that's the thing. You'll be competing against professional athletes, who have had years of real racing experience. The professional sentiment is against sim drivers. All the other drivers, the FIA, even your own pit crew, they're all going to hate you!"

"But, won't I have good support from the crowd?"

"Well, there is quite a huge simracing community, so you'll have quite some support from the crowd, but on the track, you're going to have a lot of enemies, especially the team we're aiming to beat, which is Rich Racing."

"Wait, Rich Racing? Isn't that the one run by Filthy Rich, and is also in F1?"

"Yep, that's the one alright. They've got faster cars as well than us. They've managed to get Ferrari 296s."

"Oh, he's not going to be happy to see me on the track. Me and my friends once stopped him from buying a camp we go to. He wanted to turn that place into a resort as the owner didn't pay him money to keep the lease on the land, which was his, but we held a large fundraiser, and ended up stopping that plan, so he's probably still salty about it."

"Great. The rivalry's going be higher between us and Rich Racing then, once Filthy Rich finds out that you're driving for us. We have to make sure that they don't try anything nasty to Thunderbolt Motorsports. Also, there is another important thing. You graduate from high school next year, right?"

"Well, actually, in 2025, since I just turned 17 in August."

"Well, we're going to have to make sure you don't miss out on school while on races, so that way, you have a backup option in case racing doesn't work out well for you. We're going to talk to your principal about this. We're going make sure you attend all your tests and exams, even if you are in another country." said Soaring Surfer. "Quickly, get prepared. We're heading out in ten minutes."

"But isn't today a Sunday? School's closed!" said Sunset.

"Yep, today's Sunday. But I live in Canterlot City, and the principal of your school happens to live just down the road from my house, so we're heading there. I already called her in advance, and she knows we're coming to her house. So, get ready quick!" said Soaring Surfer, as Sunset ran into her bathroom, surprised that Principal Celestia didn't live at the school itself, and actually had a house somewhere else, considering that Sunset had only seen her outside of CHS a couple of times.

Soon, she was dressed, and sitting in Soaring Surfer's beautiful purple Lamborghini Urus. Sunset was enjoying the ride, it being her first time in a Lamborghini. She intently listened to the sound of the V8 engine, as the Urus drove down the streets of Canterlot City, heading towards one of the more upscale neighborhoods in the city.

The sports SUV drove into one such neighborhood, and after heading down the main road for a couple of minutes, drove into the driveway of one of the houses. It seemed like all of the other houses in this neighborhood, a large villa. Apart from Soaring Surfer's Urus, there was only one other car in the driveway, which was a relatively humble white Mercedes E-Class. The Urus parked next to the E-Class, and everyone got out. The three walked to the villa's door, and Surfer rang the doorbell.

The door opened to reveal Principal Celestia, who was in a very different attire to what Sunset saw in school. She was wearing a sleeveless shirt, despite the fact that it was almost winter, and an apron that read 'KISS THE COOK'. That made Sunset laugh a little. "Ah, gentlemen, and Sunset, welcome to my house. Sorry about this attire, I was just making an early lunch. Come on in!" said Celestia, as Surfer, Comet Flash, and Sunset walked into the house, which was quite nicely furnished.

As they went down and sat on the sofa, Celestia went off to the kitchen again, to probably go and switch off. When she came back from the kitchen, she had taken off the 'KISS THE COOK' apron. "So, you tell me Sunset is a potential candidate for your racing team, Mr. Surfer?" asked Celestia.

"Yes, Miss Celestia. The thing is, we were hoping to sign her for a one-year contract to our team, to see how well she can do as a real racer." said Surfer, rubbing his hair sheepishly.

Celestia instantly stood up at that. "One year? But she could be missing a whole year, which she might have to repeat. Plus, isn't it a little dangerous, for her to compete in a dangerous sport like motorsports? She's just 17."

"Miss Celestia, my name's Comet Flash. I understand your concerns, being a former racer myself." said Comet Flash, finally speaking up. "However, most of us all started racing at very young ages. I myself started racing go-karts when I was just 6 years old. Most of us all got into some of the top tiers of motorsports at the ages of just 18 or 19. I myself got a seat in Formula 1, the holy grail of motorsports, when I was just 18, and continued racing there until my retirement in 2015, at the age of 28." explained Comet Flash.

"About the missed classes, you can email us the lessons and homework, so she can do it on the go. Plus, she can also get help from her friends. As for tests and exams, let us know in advance, so we can schedule online conference calls, and the teachers can supervise her during that. Keep in mind that Fridays till Sundays are usually race weekends, so she will be on the racetrack then. Plus, if there are a couple of weeks between races, she can physically come to school as well." said Soaring Surfer.

"I see. We can do that, but please make sure she doesn't end up in any serious accidents out there. She's one of the best students at my school." said Celestia.

"Don't worry, Miss Celestia. Sunset seems to have good skill in cars and racing, and as a former racer myself, I'll make sure of that." said Comet Flash.

"Also, where can I watch the races? When the school finds out, even if they can't go to the tracks themselves, they'll want to see her racing. Plus, I used to be quite an adrenaline junkie when I was younger." said Celestia.

"Well, the Moon Sports Network is broadcasting the races live on TV and on some social media sites, such as MyStable and Lifeinvader. We have to get going now, we're going to be heading to the team headquarters, which are here in Canterlot City. Here's my business card. It has my phone number and email address on it." said Soaring Surfer, handing Celestia his business card.

"All right then. It was a pleasure meeting you. When does the racing start?" asked Celestia.

"Well, the first race of this season is in March, and it ends in November. Before that, all of the teams have a pre-season testing period in February, to prepare the cars, and get ready for the racing season, so she'll be gone for sometime." said Comet Flash.

"I see. Anyways, again, it was nice meeting you all. I hope to see you at school soon, Sunset." said Celestia, as the trio bid farewell, and climbed back into Surfer's Lamborghini, before peeling out of Celestia's driveway, heading towards the headquarters of Thunderbolt Motorsports. They would drop Sunset home on the way. It was now 12:40pm, almost lunchtime. Sunset would soon be meeting her co-driver, and then, the announcement that Sunset would be Thunderbolt's second driver, and then, it would be time to hit the track.

Contract Signing

6TH NOVEMBER 2023

------THUNDERBOLT MOTORSPORTS HEADQUARTERS, CANTERLOT CITY------

It was 7:00pm in Canterlot City. Today was a big day for Thunderbolt Motorsports. It would be the day that Sunset would be revealed as their second driver, and the winner of RaceWorld Academy. It was probably going to shock the world, that both of Thunderbolt's drivers were women, since racing was mainly male-dominated, but that was the point of this team. It was to show that you didn't big money to race, and anyone, even women, could race if they just had the skills, no matter if it was in the virtual world or in real life. It was to take racing away from the rich guys.

Sunset was already at the Thunderbolt HQ, getting ready. She would walk up onto the stage in her racing suit, and then, take off the helmet, revealing her face and identity. This would be livestreamed on multiple social media sites, and multiple sites about motorsports would also be covering it as well. Sunset had also seen multiple discussions on online forums talking about whether someone with only video game experience should be allowed to compete, while streamers and influencers were talking about how this showed that video games weren't useless after all.

All in all, this was taking the Internet and the motorsports world by storm, and Sunset was going to reveal her face today, the person behind the controversy. She was going to break some of the gender, wealth, and experience barriers of motorsports. Apart from her and her teammate, Hot Rocket, of the 20 drivers on the grid, there was only one other female driver, who was driving for Nissan, if Sunset remembered correctly.

Sunset was in one of the backstage areas, getting ready to come out onto the stage of the indoor arena where the event had been set up. She was already in her racing suit, albeit without her helmet, and could hear the audience, waiting to be appeased. She was wondering how the crowd would react when they saw her face. As Sunset relaxed behind stage, a woman walked into her room. Sunset instantly knew her, although they hadn't met before. It was her new teammate, Hot Rocket. They hadn't met before, but Sunset had heard great things about her, as she had heard that she was a local champion in her home country of Brazil.

"Pleased to meet you, Sunset Shimmer." said Hot Rocket, in a thick Portuguese accent, as she held her hand out to Sunset for her to shake.

"Pleased to meet you, Hot Rocket. Guess we're teammates for this season, huh?" said Sunset, shaking Hot Rocket's hand.

"We are, companheiro de equipe. That means teammate in Portuguese, if you're wondering. I'll just let you know in advance, the others aren't going to be too kind to us out there. I'm being nice only because we're both girl drivers, but the others won't. We'll be on our own. The only people we can depend on are our team." said Hot Rocket.

"I know. It's a little better here in the US, but in other countries, its only now that women are getting into motorsports."

"Tell me about that. My família, back in Brasil, thought I was crazy to get into motorsports, and told me that as a girl, I would never succeed. Look at me now!"

"I know, right! Your family is probably happy and shocked at the same time!"

"Actually, they disowned me after I went into the world of racing. I haven't talked to them, oh, in five years now."

"Wait, what?! You haven't talked to your family in five years?"

"Yeah, but it's honestly been okay without them around. They would have purposely asked Surfer to kick me off the team, as I was putting myself in too much risk. What about your folks, huh? Did they approve of you being into motorsports?"

Sunset thankfully had a response to this question, one that she had used multiple times, as her own parents were ponies back in Equestria. "Well, I actually grew up in the foster system, since I never knew my own parents."

"Oh my! I'm so sorry! Did you ever find out who your family were?"

"No, and I never wanted to. Why would I want to find the people who abandoned me?" asked Sunset. "Currently, the closest I have to family are my friends from school."

"I see. Do they know you got selected to drive with us?"

"No. They just texted me telling me that they will join the livestream, so they will find out soon. They'll support me, no matter what."

"You know, I was talking with Comet Flash yesterday, about the impending delivery of our cars, and he mentioned that you seem to have quite the ability to read your vehicle. He told me about the glazed brake incident during training. I believe him. You really seem to be able to read your car better than even some World Champion racers, he says."

"Wait, what?! He actually said that?" asked a shocked Sunset.

"Yeah, he did. He feels you can actually make some waves out on the track, enough to terrify Rich Racing, apparently."

"Huh. In training, he said that he was there to prove that we couldn't do what we had come to do, and that we couldn't make it out there. He was quite rude to most of us."

"He's like that at first, because you guys were trying to do something that had never been done before. He's actually a pretty nice person, once you get to know him. There are some things he'll probably never discuss with you, like why he quit racing. I've tried. Don't bother. Anyways, you have to go on stage soon. Soaring Surfer is busy speaking, you better get ready." said Hot Rocket, as Surfer was speaking.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, the moment you have all been waiting for. Our new driver is coming onto the stage, and you will find our driver quite dashing. Please welcome her to the stage!" said Surfer, as Sunset put on her helmet, put the visor down, and came onto the stage, her face fully hidden by her helmet. The crowd went wild, as Sunset came onto the stage, welcoming everyone, hands in the air.

"All right, let's see her face, shall we?" said Surfer, and give Sunset a subtle cue to take off the helmet. Sunset instantly opened the visor, showing the audience her eyes, which were full of determination. As the audience ooh'd and aah'd, wondering what would the face on which those pretty eyes looked like, Sunset began removing her helmet, and the cameras began clicking. When Sunset fully took the helmet off, revealing her face, the crowd went wild.

As they began going crazy, Surfer began to speak again. "Meet Sunset Shimmer. She's a high-school student, only 17 years old, but she kicks ass out there on the track. Take a look at some of her driving during our training sessions, as a video began playing on the large projector screen that had been set up. Footage began playing on it, taken from outside and inside Sunset's car when she was racing at RaceWorld Academy. The footage was real, and it showed some of her best moments, such as her recovering from the spin that Sonata had bumped her into, and her drifting to make overtakes.

By the time the footage compilation ended, the audience was cheering and going crazy, and then, Surfer said, "Now, I'm going to allow Miss Shimmer to speak a few words to you all and answer some of your questions. Then, we'll sign the contract, and we also have a little teaser for you at the end." That last sentence made the crowd begin wondering what the teaser was.

Then, Surfer handed off the microphone to Sunset, who then began speaking. "Dear attendees, thanks for coming here today. I'm not the traditional definition of a racing driver, you know, being a girl, and someone who hasn't had any real on-track experience until I got selected into RaceWorld Academy, but that's what I'm here to do. I'm here to change the definition of who can be a racer. I'm here to prove the impossible is possible. In recent years, racing has become more corrupt, thanks to unskilled racers with lots of money, bribery and what not. I'm here to show that you don't need to be rich to enter racing, and also that video games can be useful after all."

Most of the audience chuckled at that, but all of the gamers, as well as those from gaming news sites, began cheering at that, happy that such it was finally being proved. As Sunset continued, "So, no matter what game you play, what cars you prefer, if you use wheel or keyboard or controller, if you play on PC or console, gamers, ASSEMBLE! We're all in this together!" shouted Sunset, making of all the gamers cheer once more, all at once, uniting to support one of their comrades.
"That's all I have to say. Thank you, and GOOD NIGHT!" shouted Sunset, ending off her talk, with much applause, as she headed off the stage.

As she left the stage, a new video began playing on the projector screen. The screen at first was completely dark, but then, the roar of an engine was heard, and two circular lights came on the screen. The lights of a Porsche 911. Then, some lettering came up on the screen. All it read was 'Coming Soon...' This made everyone cheer again, realising that the team would soon reveal their car.

"You heard it here, folks! We will be revealing our car next month! 14th December 2023, we will be unveiling our car! You heard it here first, folks! Thank you, and good night!" said Surfer, ending the event, as the crowd cheered one last time, filling the night with noise. It was now 9:00pm. Backstage, Sunset was happy. The crowd seemed to like her. Hopefully, she could beat Rich Racing this season.

Testing (Part 1)

Author's Note

In this universe, I've decided that Canterlot City is in New Jersey, not too far from Atlantic City.

Testing (Part 1)

7TH FEBRUARY 2024

------40,000 FEET OVER THE PERSIAN GULF------

It was 2:30am in this part of the world, despite the early hour, in the luxury confines of the Bombardier Global 7500, everyone was awake. The private jet was currently over Lebanon, and was soon going to begin its descent towards Zayed International Airport in Abu Dhabi. Pre-season testing would begin soon, at the Yas Marina Circuit in the city. The cars had already been flown in on a cargo plane, and had already been shipped in. Sunset was excited to race this track in real life, as this was where the Formula 1 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix was held. It was usually the ending race of the F1 season, and Sunset was excited to race this track IRL.

The private jet belonged to Soaring Surfer. One of the jets from the charter firm he owned, he could requisition one from them at any time they wanted. The flight had started the previous day. They had began the nonstop 12-hour flight to Abu Dhabi from Newark Liberty International Airport. The whole core team of Thunderbolt Motorsports was aboard the plane. Sunset, Comet Flash, Hot Rocket, and some of their pit crew and strategy analysts were all in their seats aboard the plane. Soaring Surfer himself was also aboard the private jet, relaxing in his cabin. He was probably getting up already, in preparation for their descent into Abu Dhabi.

As they all settled in their seats as the pilots announced the beginning of their descent over the jet's P.A. system, and that they were currently somewhere off the coast of Saudi Arabia. As the descent continued, Surfer came out of his cabin, and got into one of the jet's luxurious seats, to prepare himself for their arrival in Abu Dhabi. As the descent continued, they could feel the plane banking towards Zayed International, and those who were sitting on the right side of the plane could see the lights of Bahrain in the distance. The passengers were all extremely alert, as they had slept for most of the flight to help fight off the jet lag.

As the plane descended lower and lower as it came closer to the airport, they could all see the lights of Abu Dhabi come into their view, and the city came closer towards them. The lights inside the plane went out, as the pilots announced over the P.A. system to get ready for landing, as they closed towards the airport. As the plane began its final turns to line up with the runway, they could hear the roar underneath, as the landing gear was lowered, and saw the landing lights came on. Soon, they were over the runway, and at exactly 3:20am, they felt the plane touch down with a smooth bump on the runway of Zayed International Airport.

After landing, the plane exited the runway and taxied down to the VIP terminal. Surfer had already arranged cars for them, to come and take them to their hotel, which was located near the Yas Marina Circuit. The plane taxied to the VIP terminal, and parked at its spot there. There were a few other private jets there, but not as imposing as a certain one. It was a Boeing 737-800, an airliner that had been converted for VIP usage. It had the logo of Rich Racing on its tail. It belonged to Filthy Rich and his team. That was not surprising at all, thought everyone on Soaring Surfer's Global 7500, as they got off the plane, and despite the late hour, the high temperature of the desert country that was the UAE hit them all hard.

They all went into the VIP terminal, got all their passport checks, and then headed to the exit, where the vehicles Surfer had arranged were waiting for them. There was a small convoy waiting for them. There were two black Mercedes V-Class vans, for the pit crew and analysts, a white Rolls-Royce Phantom VIII for Soaring Surfer, and two white Mercedes S-Classes for Sunset and Comet Flash. Once everybody was inside the vehicles, they all began heading towards their hotel. Thankfully, the track was just ten minutes from the airport. It also adjoined the Ferrari World theme park run by Ferrari themselves, so that was an added plus.

The vehicles reached the hotel at around 3:45am. Everyone took their luggage, went into the hotel, and checked into their rooms, to get a few hours of sleep before the first day of pre-season testing would begin, at around 8:30am in the morning the next day. Sunset and Hot Rocket would especially need it. They had to do good on the track, so they could show how well they would handle real racecars, as until now, they had only driven the road cars. The race cars had also been revealed in December, and the design had been loved by everyone in the car world.

As Sunset went off to sleep on the luxurious bed in her one-person room, she began thinking about some of the strategies she would use on track, and ways to show off to her friends on track if they came to see a race physically. For now, they would be watching them online, since they wouldn't be back in the US for a while. She also had to figure out how to get a top 5 finish within the first five races of the season. That would be the hardest challenge, thought Sunset, as she slept off in her extremely cold room, thanks to the AC in the heat of Abu Dhabi.

9TH FEBRUARY 2024

------YAS MARINA CIRCUIT------

The team, despite a bit of jet lag, were up early, at 7:00am, did some strategy work, and then, headed down to the track, and entered their pit quarters for the next week, where they would be spending a lot of time. Their cars, fresh from the factory, were already there. Their livery reveal was amazing, and had been done by world-famous pop star Countess Coloratura, whose recently founded tuning firm was sponsoring Thunderbolt Motorsports. Sunset would be running the #14 car, and Hot Rocket would be running the #9 car.

Thunderbolt's Porsche 911 GT3 Rs were black, with stripes of blue and green on them, reminiscent of the 'oil slick' paint job used by a famous Japanese tuner on their racing cars. Sunset admired this machine, that she would be driving today, as they got ready for the session. So far, they had been the first team to arrive at the track, but now that it was 7:30, the others were arriving now, including Rich Racing.

Soon, at 8:30am, the first pre-season testing begun, and Sunset was leaving the pits. Comet Flash wouldn't just be her trainer, he would also be Thunderbolt's crew chief, so he would be talking to Sunset on the radio from the pit box. Sunset admitted that Rich Racing had done a good job on the design of their Ferrari 296 GT3s, as she passed their pit box. Their Ferraris were painted a single shade. Rosso Corsa, the iconic Ferrari red color. They had logos everywhere, including a dollar sign on the front, which was the logo of Filthy Rich's resort firm. Sponsoring his own team, thought Sunset, as she headed out, and hit the gas, followed by Hot Rocket behind her.

Temperatures were starting to rise in the Middle East, and due to the hot conditions, the temperatures could rise up to 54 degrees Celsius, being a desert country. Thankfully, the cars had AC, which was surprising, given it was a race car, but it would activated only if the temperature inside the car went above 32 degrees Celsius. As Sunset began her laps, she was surprised how different the GT3 R was different from the road car. It had more power, of course, having almost 570 horsepower, but it also handled much differently, being lighter than the road car. Plus, the seats were also uncomfortable, being carbon fiber racing seats.

As Sunset continued to make laps of Yas Marina, she started to feel more comfortable in the car, as testing continued. However, the track soon started to get more crowded, as more cars started to enter, including the Rich Racing Ferraris, who began driving very aggressively on entering the track, and even more so when the Thunderbolt Motorsports Porsches appeared in their rear-view mirrors. Filthy Rich wanted to get back at Sunset for stealing his resort site from him, thought Sunset.

Plus, some of the other drivers also started getting aggressive around them, probably because they didn't want gamers on a real track. In fact, when Sunset came in for her first pit, one of her pit crew members gestured to open the small window, and asked her, "So difficult compared to using a controller, eh?" and laughing at her. It took Sunset quite a bit of willpower to not punch him in the face.

The rest of the session was rather uneventful, and the end of the first day of testing, at around 4:00pm, the team had gathered a lot of data about how their two drivers performed, and how the cars were holding up, especially in a hot country like Abu Dhabi. They were extremely tired, that they couldn't even head to Ferrari World like they were planning to.

10TH FEBRUARY 2024

------YAS MARINA CIRCUIT------

The next day, the team was up a little later than usual, around 7:30am. For the second day of testing, they would be checking the car's aerodynamics by using flow-vis paint, which they would put on the main aerodynamic parts of the car, such as the rear wing, the front lip, and the other parts, so that way, the paint would streak in the slipstream, and would show just how well the car's aero was.

There were only three factory-run teams on the grid this year. They were Ford, Nissan, and McLaren. The others were all private teams running with factory support, bar one team that was running Honda NSXs, of which Honda had ended production the previous year.

As testing began once more, at 8:30am, the Thunderbolt team, due to the time it took to apply the flow-vis paint to the cars, didn't get running until almost 9:00am. As they headed out, they faced more aggressive driving, and during the session, on turn 3, one of the Mustang GT3s from the Ford team almost wiped Sunset out. Sunset came back into the pits a little later to see some results on the aero, fuming. "That asshole of a Mustang driver almost rear-ended me! What was he thinking, trying to make the Mustang memes true out on the track?" asked an angry Sunset. "I'm gonna give him a piece of my mind when he comes in!"

"Whoa, first of all, young lady, keep that temper down, okay? Thank Gods we didn't find that out mid-season. We don't want any fistfights out on track." said Comet Flash. "Second of all, I looked at the replay. You were going quite slow on that section and you drove onto the racing line, as he was speeding up. That was your fault, so you'll have to apologise to that guy. Anyways, you should get that chance soon, looks like he and the other Ford driver are coming in for a pit." explained Comet Flash

At that, Sunset glared at him. "Look, I'm still your crew chief, so don't give me that attitude, kid! Look, it's not gonna get any easier, but you gotta keep a lid on that temper of yours. You're only gonna make our jobs harder if you keep blowing up like that, and you certainly won't be liked by the fans either! Go down to the Ford pits and apologise to him, he's coming in now." said Flash.

Sunset glared a little bit more, before finally relenting. "You're right. With some of my experiences at school, it's way too easy for me to lose control of my temper. I'll go apologise to that guy, Silverstreak, right?" said Sunset.

"You do that." said Comet Flash, a little not as uptight now. "I'll have the pit crew make some changes to your setup, and also, I'll see how the aerodynamics fared, we've been out for almost one and a half hours now. You're almost in the top 10 now, and Hot Rocket's in 6th currently."

Comet Flash went off to the mechanics' zone, and Sunset went over to the Ford pit area, just as Silverstreak, a 36 year old American known for the silver streak in his blue hair, got out of his purple and orange Mustang GT3. Sunset grimaced a little at the car, though. She didn't really like the new Mustang, compared to the old one. Thankfully, despite the fact that Sunset was a gamer, he didn't seem to hold any prejudice against her, and he was quite understanding.

"Shoot, we were all rookies at some time or another." said the older driver, in his trademark Texan accent. "We've all made mistakes very early on in our careers. You're lucky that I'm a nice guy. There are some riders on this here track, who won't be so kind. Also, I think your boss would have told ya, but had this been an actual race, that would have been a slam-dunk penalty. If I'm not mistaken, that kinda offence nets you a 3-place grid penalty. Do it too often, and the penalty increases to 5, then 10, then back of the grid. Worst case scenario is a one-race ban."

"Thanks, Silverstreak, I'm relatively new to this world."

"It's alright. You're gonna face some opposition from them other drivers out there, since ya got selected by a video game, and didn't really come from big money, like some of the others here. It's gonna be tougher for ya, since most of us have been racing go-karts and touring cars for years. Always remember, if you mess up in a game, you can reset. Mess up out here, there are consequences." said Silverstreak, as he began to get back in his car for the next round. "Meet ya later." said Silverstreak, as they parted ways, and Sunset headed back to her pits, to grab some electrolytes, and head out again.

The rest of this session too passed uneventfully, apart from one incident, where one of the Lexus RC F GT3s being driven by a Japan-based team crashed into a barrier after a surprise tire burst. Thankfully, its driver was unharmed, and the session was temporarily yellow flagged. By the end of the session, Sunset had made it into the 9th fastest time, and the car had also performed admirably.

As the second day of testing ended, it was a good day for the team, and Thunderbolt was starting to get some good attention, from people who had been watching the first day of testing. As Sunset and crew went back to the hotel, they just hoped they could beat Rich Racing this season, as long as they didn't try any dirty tricks.

Testing (Part 2)

Something has gone wrong. We don't seem to have an archived copy of that chapter.

Off-time

17TH FEBRUARY 2024

------B-202, SUNNY HEIGHTS, CANTERLOT CITY------

It was now 11:00am here in Canterlot City. Originally, the season was due to start on 16th March, a Saturday, but due to a scheduling issue, all races had been shifted to Sundays, so it would start on the 17th instead, exactly a month from now. In fact, the hype about the new racing series, the Road Car World Championship, had increased, so much that multiple people were willing to travel all the way across the globe to watch the first race. Even in Canterlot City, the hype was high, especially considering that one of the teams competing was based there, and one of the drivers for that team was also from Canterlot City.

Sunset Shimmer was inside her apartment building, which was now surrounded by police officers for protection, since paparazzi kept being extremely intrusive to try and get pictures of her. That was quite annoying, but Sunset rather liked the attention, especially considering that it was of the good kind, and not the bad kind. Her friends were going to come over today, for a sleepover, since it was a Saturday. She just hoped the paparazzi wouldn't mob her friends when they came to her house.

As Sunset waited for her friends, suddenly, she could hear honking, and looked out of her window, peeking out of the curtains so that the paparazzi didn't see her. As she looked out, she saw what she feared. Rarity's purple Maserati GranCabrio, instantly recognisable by the three stripes of the Italian flag painted down the length of the car, was being surrounded by paparazzi, who had found that the girls were her friends by stalking her at school.

She could tell that Rarity, who was driving the car, was trying to get into the building's parking lot, but the paparazzi were blocking the route to get some information about Sunset from her, and the police, despite their attempts, were unable to get them away from Rarity's car.

As one of the photographers attempted to shove a camera in the open drivers' side window for pictures, Sunset saw a white-skinned fist come out of the window and punch the photographer in the face, catching him by surprise. As the stunned man fell to the ground, blood streaming from his nose, all of his fellow paparazzi came out to help him. The police used this opportunity to move some of the paparazzi aside. This let Rarity drive the Maserati in quickly, and the police quickly closed the entry gate to the parking lot, blocking off the paparazzi.

Sunset watched in relief. The paparazzi definitely deserved that punch, for being so intrusive and disrespecting the privacy of her friends like that, just to get information on her. Soon, Sunset heard her doorbell ring, as her friends arrived. "Hey girls!" said Sunset, happy to see her friends.

"Hey! How was the Middle East?" asked Twilight.

"It was amazing. Quite hot, but I'm surprised there was so much stuff to see in a desert country like the Middle East. I got to see the Ferrari World theme park, which is actually run by Ferrari themselves." said Sunset.

"I've heard that Ferrari World has the world's fastest rollercoaster. Did you get to ride it?" asked Rainbow Dash.

"Yeah, that rollercoaster's capable of a top speed of 150 miles per hour. We did get to ride it, and oh, wow, Dash, you would love it." said Sunset.

"Did you see get to see some traditional Arabic fashion? The fashion studio I work for wants to target the Muslim countries in the Middle East, and I want to present them some designs that don't really offend any Muslims, due to hijabs and what not." said Rarity.

"I did, I visited a few shops in Abu Dhabi, and I even took some pictures. I just sent them to you." said Sunset, as a notification popped up on Rarity's phone. As Rarity opened the pictures, her eyes went wide, as she saw the pictures that Sunset had sent her. She let off a squee, and began remarking how well the dresses had been stitched, and other fashion-related things, as she pulled about a sketchbook, and began drawing her own ideas, inspired by these pictures.

"Hey, Sunset, where's the first race gonna be held? I know it's not gonna be in America, but at least let us know tha' country, as the whole school wants to hold a large watchin' party for every race." said Applejack.

"Well, the first race will be in the land down under, Australia, in Melbourne, to precise. Melbourne is 14 hours ahead of Canterlot City, so you gotta be ready for a rather late night watching party, as all the races will be held at around 4:00pm in the local time of the host country." said Sunset.

"That's fine. Quite a few people will be willing to watch, since everyone wants to see a student from our school out on a racetrack! I can hold a MIDNIGHT WATCHING PARTYYY!" shouted Pinkie Pie, and Twilight had to quickly conjure up a soundproof bubble, so that the paparazzi didn't go crazy outside. Thankfully, Sunset had closed the curtains and closed the windows, so no one could see what was going on inside.

"Those paparazzi are super annoying. Rarity had to give one of them a bleeding nose so we could get inside here." said Twilight.

"I know. I saw that from the window, and don't worry, I don't think any of the paparazzi saw me. They were too busy helping their comrade. The papers are probably going to accuse you of recklessly assaulting a journalist." said Sunset.

"I know that, darling, but once the footage comes out, the public will be supporting us, and not that idiot of a journalist. You'll see. People don't support paparazzi, especially not in these cases, where they become too intrusive." said Rarity nonchalantly.

"I know, but we'll have to be a little bit more careful around the media. We can't let my reputation get smeared already." said Sunset.

"Darling, don't worry. Considering the amount of people who are supporting you, you'll always have fans behind your back. Also, have you talked to that cute boyfriend of yours?"

"Whom, Powerslide? He's not my boyfriend, for Faust's sake! He's just a good friend, that's all! Also, he's busy with his own racing career. He's gotten into a team in WRC3, and he's doing rally racing! The season started in January, and he's in Sweden right now for his second race, so he's quite busy right now!"

"And what about Sonata Dusk, your former enemy, as the papers say?"

"She's also working on her own racing career, alright? She's gotten a spot as a reserve driver in Formula 3, and as an active Formula 4 driver! Also, we've become friends, alright!"

"Okay. But about Powerslide, he's quite a cute and nice guy, from what we've heard about him from you. He's definitely a keeper, okay, darling? We have to meet him once, when he's not busy racing." said Rarity.

"First of all, he's not my boyfriend, he's just a good friend of mine, and I'm not in the dating scene right now, girls!"

"Don' worry, we'll keep your secret. I can tell, there's something up between you two." said Applejack.

"Fine. We just shared one kiss, alright, at RaceWorld Academy, and he likes me too, okay? We aren't going into a relationship, yet, not until I'm 18."

At that, everyone in the room went "Oooooooh!"

"Why didn't you tell us? We should do a double date sometime, you and Powerslide, me and Timber Spruce!" said Twilight.

"Fine, we'll have to do that sometime." said Sunset, as the other girls began asking her questions about what racing was like, and how she was going to manage her school and racing career. As the sleepover progressed, Sunset knew that soon, she was not going to get much time for stuff like this, as the first race of the season neared.

Round 1: Melbourne

16TH MARCH 2024

------ALBERT PARK CIRCUIT, MELBOURNE------

It was almost 3:00pm here in Melbourne, which meant it was 11:00pm back in Canterlot City. It was qualifying day for the first race of the first season of the 2024 FIA Road Car World Championship. This was the one motorsport that everyone was excited for. All of the hotels near the track were fully booked out, filled with racing fans who had travelled from all of the world, including countries such as Sweden, Hawaii, and Colombia to watch this. It was highly hyped, and everyone was here to watch it, no matter what gender they were, or what cars they preferred.

While most people were excited to see some of the good drivers hit the track, everyone was wondering how well Sunset would do on the track. They had seen some videos that had been taken during the pre-season testing, but a lot of people wanted to see what she could do in an actual race. To them, the testing was like a typical track day, albeit with much more expensive and harder to handle cars. This was the real deal, the place where their skills would truly be put to the test.

As Sunset had predicted, the previous month, after Rarity had punched the intrusive paparazzi in the face, the video of the incident had gone viral online, and some people were saying that Sunset's 'entitled fashion designer friend' had recklessly assaulted a journalist in an unprovoked attack, but most people sided with Rarity, saying that the paparazzi had been extremely intrusive, and deserved that punch.

Despite the fact that it was quite late in the night in Canterlot City, Sunset knew her friends were probably watching this, even if it was just qualifying. They probably wouldn't be able to catch the actual race, since it would be a Sunday night back in the US, when it was Sunday afternoon in Australia. She had already copied down her notes before the race, and there was no homework to finish. As Sunset got ready for her session, Comet Flash came up to Sunset. "Sunset, I'd like to speak to you. In private." said Flash.

That surprised Sunset. Comet Flash had never asked to speak to her like this. It must be important, if that was the case. They went off to a corner of the pit booth where no one was present. Here, one he made sure they were out of hearing distance, Comet Flash began speaking. "I know what you did to Rash Rider back during testing was on purpose."

"What do you mean? That incident between me and him in Abu Dhabi was his fault!" said Sunset.

"Don't try to fool me, Sunset. I was a racer myself, remember, and I have more than 20 years of experience in the world of racing, so I know what its like, being new to this world, wanting to get back at other drivers. Believe me, I know very well." said Comet Flash, with a cool but stern demeanor. Sunset could tell that he knew about what happened that day at Yas Marina Circuit. Knowing that there was no point in lying, Sunset decided to come clean about it to Comet Flash.

"Fine, yeah, I did that on purpose. I was so mad at Rash Rider hitting me, that I purposely just used his own move against him. I aggressively slammed the door, and purposely caused him to spin out. Truth be told, I was so angry that I even was hoping he might crash." said Sunset, in shame.

"Sunset, I know that you were mad at him, but you can't just purposely try to force a rival into a wreck! That could get you black-flagged from a race, and it also ruins drivers' reputations! Plus, have you forgotten, that this isn't RaceWorld, and that this is real life?!" asked Comet Flash, angry with Sunset.

"I know, but I forgot that I couldn't let my anger get the better of me..." said Sunset, now red-faced in shame and embarassment.

"You FORGOT?! One simply does not 'forget' one of the golden rules of racing like that!" said Comet Flash, who was now rather unhappy with Sunset. "Look, I already told you this at pre-season testing, but you can't just lose your temper like that! It'll ruin your public image, and it can ruin your race as well! I'm not saying don't be an unemotional robot, but try to keep it all in during the race, and once you're somewhere private, like in your hotel room, you can let them all out!"

"Fine, I guess I'll take anger management classes!" said Sunset, now really annoyed at her boss.

"Look, Sunset, I know it's going to be a little hard, but you just have to hold on. Think of the people who annoy you as small dogs, and yourself as a big dog. When a big dog is barked at by a smaller one, they don't even look at the small dog. Just think like that, and you shouldn't be just lose it like that." said Flash, softening up.

"I know, but earlier, I used to be a bully at school, so part of that bully personality is still in me." said Sunset, now apologetic.

"Sunset, then tell that part of you to shut up, no matter how, and get on that track now, because qualifying is going to start soon." said Flash, rather sternly this time, as the pit crew began telling each other to get the cars ready, since they would be heading out soon for the first part of qualifying. Since there were 20 drivers on the grid for this season, the qualifying sessions for this season would the same format as that of Formula 1.

As Sunset hopped into her Porsche, which had been fully topped off, with new tires, brakes, and fluids, she could hear the loud revving, as the other drivers also were getting ready to head out. As the cars began heading out, so did Sunset and Hot Rocket. The two black, blue, and green Porsche 911 GT3 Rs drove out, followed by the purple and orange Ford Mustang GT3 of Silverstreak, and the red Ferrari 296 GT3 of Rash Rider.

The four cars exited the pits, and entered the track, as Q1, the first qualifying session began. Q1 would last only 18 minutes, so the drivers had to make the most of it. As they zoomed towards the Brabham turn, their performance was relatively slow, as they were just warming up their tires, before their actual hot laps began. They had made several laps of the track during the practice session the previous day, and Sunset had found this turn quite hard, especially considering how fast a driver would be coming through the main straight before hitting the first turn, and the deceleration would get her quite hard.

As the four drivers' impromptu 'formation lap' continued, the speeds started increasing, and by turn 11, all of them were going over 200 kilometers per hour. Soon, they were on their hot laps, and the time between their cars increased, as they began their hot laps. Their driving styles changed, as the hot laps began, and they were all hoping to not get eliminated. For this, they had to qualify in the top 15.

By the end of Q1, Sunset managed to finish Q1 in 7th place, which was not too bad for her first time doing it IRL. However, Rash Rider managed to finish in 2nd, while a spinout caused Silverstreak to end up in 11th. Hot Rocket, on the other hand managed to finish in 5th place, just ahead of Sunset.

Q2 began after a short 10-minute break, and now, they had to qualify in the top 10 to not get eliminated. It was also shorter, lasting only 15 minutes. Q2 was quite similar to the first, but this time, Silverstreak got disqualified after his Mustang GT3 spun after he braked too late on turn 1, placing him in 12th place, which got him disqualified. Sunset put up another good fight, finishing Q2 in 8th this time, but Hot Rocket was disqualified after finishing in 11th, missing out on 10th by just 0.01 seconds. Rash Rider was also going to Q3, having finished in 4th.

There was another short 10-minute break before Q3, which also went quite well, with Sunset qualifying in 9th, and Rash Rider qualifying in 5th. Sunset knew she had to finish in the top 5 during the main race, as part of one of the conditions put forward by the FIA officials. But for now, she could grab some rest, now that qualifying was over, and head back to her hotel room for some pre-race preparation.

17TH MARCH 2024

------ALBERT PARK CIRCUIT, MELBOURNE------

Today was race day. It was now 3:50pm in Melbourne, which meant it was almost midnight back in Canterlot City, but despite that, the crowd was eager to watch this race, as it was the first one in this new racing series, and the first time a gamer would be hitting the track in such a major event. Sure, Powerslide was already racing in WRC3, but WRC3 was quite a minor series, compared to the FIA Road Car World Championship.

This year, only one version of the series, called N600, which only allowed cars having up to 600 horsepower, was racing. However, from next year onwards, if this first season succeeded, they would also include a series called N450, which would allow less powerful cars from the GT4 category to participate, and maybe even an N1000 series for extremely powerful cars.

As the cars were lined up on the grid for the start of the formation lap, which would start a few minutes before the actual race, all of the drivers were heading to their vehicles. Their cars, were for now covered by tarpaulins, to avoid the Sun messing with their paintwork, or to avoid the tires being heated before the race. Sunset and Hot Rocket were heading to their own vehicles. Sunset had been quite nervous, as this was her first real race, and she didn't want to disappoint all the gamers who were watching her from home or in person at the race.

Thankfully, Comet Flash had taught her a quick technique to calm down. He had made her listen to the songs of her favorite singer, in this case, Countess Coloratura, to cool her agitated nerves. Flash had told her how many times he had used to listen to his favorite retro bands, from the 1970s and 1980s, to do just that. For Sunset, since her choice was Countess Coloratura, he felt that that was the kind of music she should listen to before a race.

As Sunset climbed into her car, she was hoping to get a nice top 5 finish today, which was not going to be that hard, considering that she was starting in 9th place, so she only had overtake four cars to get in the top 5, and Rash Rider wasn't going to be too much of an issue, considering that he was starting from 4th place. As they climbed into their cars and started the engines, all of the pit crews began moving away from the track, as they got ready for the formation lap. The safety car for this season would be a Mk. 5 Toyota Supra, and it would guide them for the formation lap on the first race.

As the formation lap began, Sunset felt the nervousness grow a little, as the start of the race approached. All of the cars began moving quite slow, since no one usually went above a speed of around 75 miles per hour, or 120 kilometers per hour. In front of Sunset was the only other female driver in this series. She was Solar Wind, and she was driving for Nissan, in a crimson red 400Z GT500. This one had been de-tuned to 600 horsepower for this series, but it was still quite fast. As the formation lap continued, most of the drivers, including Sunset, began weaving from left to right, to warm up their tires, since most of them were starting on soft tires.

Finally, at 3:58pm, as the formation lap ended, the safety car went into the pits, and the drivers lined up on the grid, for a standing start. As the drivers finished lining up on the grid, everyone was in place, and time slowed down, as they waited for the start of the race. Exactly as the clock hit 4:00pm, the lights went green, all of the cars launched forward, as the 83-lap race began. Sunset was pushed back in her seat, as her car accelerated fast, and the car went from 0 to 100 kilometers per hour in just under 3 seconds, as the first lap began. The fans went crazy, as the first race of the Road Car World Championship started.

The first lap was quite eventful, with multiple overtakes. Sunset thankfully hadn't lost a position yet, while Rash Rider had droppe from 4th to 6th by Turn 3. Silverstreak, on the other hand, had made a comeback, and was currently competing with Hot Rocket for 10th, which Hot Rocket had gained on the first turn itself, followed by Silverstreak taking 11th on the next turn.

The next fifteen laps were relatively uneventful, with Sunset overtaking and taking 8th place, while Hot Rocket stayed in 10th, while Silverstreak, on the other hand, managed to take 9th place after an amazing double overtake. However, Sunset now had to contend with Solar Wind, who was not letting Sunset overtake her at all, but since there were more than 50 laps to go, Sunset decided to wait to overtake Solar Winds. Finally, that chance came on the 18th lap, where after a lengthy battle, Sunset made an amazing overtake on Turn 11, where Sunset took the 7th place spot away from Solar Wind. However, the battle recommenced soon, and it continued on, until Solar Wind went in to pit on the 21st lap, going from softs to mediums.

Soon, on the 29th lap, most of the drivers came in to pit, including Sunset, Rash Rider, Hot Rocket, and Silverstreak. Sunset, Rash Rider, and Hot Rocket swapped out their softs for mediums, while Silverstreak went for hard tires. Soon, they were all back on track, having dropped to 10th, 7th, 11th, and 14th, respectively. Despite some control difficulties with cold hard tires at first, Silverstreak was able to come back well, going from 14th to 12th within two laps, while Sunset was able to make it to 8th, and Rash Rider was back in 5th place soon.

On the 42nd lap, the race was temporarily yellow-flagged, due to Rash Rider's teammate accidentally going into a barricade on Turn 1 after failing to brake in time, and he was out of the race due to the severity of the damage to his car. On the 50th lap, Sunset successfully overtook Solar Wind, and once more regained 7th place, as the battle between the two female drivers restarted, fiercer than ever. However, it ended on the 54th lap, after Wind's 400Z suffered a blowout on the rear-left tire, and had to go into the pits for a tire change, causing her to drop from 8th to 14th place.

Sunset on the other hand, had set her sights on the 5th place, hoping to finish there in her first race, or even higher, if that was possible. So far, she had performed well, and she was hoping to keep that going for the rest of the season. On the 61st lap, pretty much everyone pitted again, mostly for another set of mediums. The race was entering its climax now, with only 22 laps left to go.

The battles began heating up, with Sunset battling for 6th against Silverstreak's co-driver from the Ford team. The main advantage Sunset had over him was her car having more power, which she was going to use to her advantage, drifting around him on Turn 1, and getting into 6th place. Now, she only had to overtake the driver in 5th place, which was Rash Rider. Surprisingly, on the 67th lap, she was able to overtake him pretty easily, as if he had purposely let her overtake. The race progressed steadily, and Sunset managed to even get into 4th place on the 75th lap. However, Rash was still behind her, and he was still trying to overtake.

Finally, only two laps were left, and Sunset was looking good for a 4th place finish, as they entered the 82nd lap. However, to everyone's horror, on Turn 4, just as Sunset braked for the turn slightly, Rash Rider suddenly bumped her car hard from the rear. The first one didn't do anything, but the second one came from the rear left, causing Sunset to spin into the gravel at close to 140 miles per hour. As Sunset's car came to a stop in the gravel, the session was temporarily yellow-flagged, for the third time this race, as Sunset got her car out of the gravel. However, during this time, she had dropped from 4th to 15th place, which she was not happy about. As Sunset got back on the track, Comet Flash's voice came on the radio. "What was that? Are you good?" asked Flash.

"No! That asshole purposely bumped me, and now I've lost 9 positions! I've gotta regain some of them, at least!" said Sunset, as she accelerated again, aiming to catch up to the other drivers. Due to all of the skills she had learned from Flash, she was able to go from 15th to 14th position on that lap. During the final lap, she was able to finish in 12th, but wasn't able to take 11th place before she crossed the finish line, much to everyone's disappointment. Rash Rider had finished in 3rd, which made Sunset especially mad, while Silverstreak had finished in 9th, and Hot Rocket had finished in 7th, bringing a couple of points for Thunderbolt. As Sunset came into the pits after the end of the race, along with all of the drivers, she instantly stormed into her pits to cool off, before talking to the media.

"What was he doing? I'm gonna go out there and drag Rash's ass off the podium!" said a very angry and unhappy Sunset.

"Whoa, whoa, Sunset, easy there now. We don't want to get banned from racing already. I know what Rash did was illegal, but he said he had car trouble, so he got away with it. I know it was on purpose, and don't worry, we will get back at Rich Racing for what they did in our next race. But first, cool down a little, and go talk to those journalists, they really want to talk to you." said Comet Flash, calming Sunset down.

Soon, both Hot Rocket and Sunset were in the media paddocks, talking to the journalists. They were extremely interested in Sunset, asking her how it was like to race IRL for the first time, and how she felt about her first finish. Sunset told them that she was quite pleased, considering it was her first race, and told them she was aiming to get that top 5 finish in the next race.

As Sunset and crew went back to her hotel, they kept checking social media, the news, even Lifeinvader channels, as well as replays of the race. So far, most seemed to be saying that Sunset looked she had quite a good future in racing, including some of the other racers, but quite a few people, including Solar Wind and Rash Rider, were saying that Sunset wasn't going to last more than a single season.

This didn't let the team lose courage, but only sparked it, making them feel that they had to get a better finish within the next four races, and hopefully, make sure Sunset could keep her racing license.

Round 2: Jeddah

23RD MARCH 2024

------CORNICHE CIRCUIT, JEDDAH------

It was now 2:45pm in the city of Jeddah, which meant it was 9:45pm back in Canterlot City. In the Thunderbolt Motorsports pits, Sunset and Hot Rocket were getting ready to hit the track. Sunset had found it hard to keep with her busy schedule a little bit. She had barely been back in school for four days since their return from Australia after their first race, and she had barely gotten over the jet lag from Australia before they had had to leave for Jeddah, the capital of Saudi Arabia, for the second race of the season.

This track was a street circuit, just like Albert Park in Melbourne, so it would be quite similar. However, this track was the longest street circuit on the racing calendar right now, just behind the Baku City Circuit in Azerbaijan. It was also one of the fastest street circuits, with Formula 1 cars having an average speed of over 250 kilometers per hour, around 155 miles per hour, on this track. It also had one of the longest straights, where a top speed of almost 340 kilometers per hour, or around 210 miles per hour, could be set.

As Sunset got ready for Q1, which would be starting in 15 minutes, Comet Flash was worried. Some of their pit crew had resigned a few nights ago, due to them not wanting to disrespect their honour by handling a driver who only had experience in video games, and not in real life. He had already suspected that a certain businessman was behind this. Thankfully, Surfer had been able to get some replacement pit crew members, albeit not as experienced as their previous ones, and who were okay working with Sunset.

The team was fully on the lookout for any saboteurs, especially ones from Rich Racing, considering the personal beef the man had with Sunset, and the fact that Thunderbolt was doing something revolutionary, which had probably scared the other teams a little bit, and made Thunderbolt the laughing stock on the grid. In fact, one of the other drivers, Solar Wind from the Nissan team, had given an interview to the media, where she had been asked, "What do you think of the Thunderbolt drivers, and do you think they are any good, especially Sunset Shimmer? She performed quite well in her first race."

The reply from Wind had been, "That little gamer girl's first race, that 12th place was a fluke. Probably used cheat codes in Australia. She ain't getting a single win this season, trust me. Shimmer is gonna get a rude awakening to the real racing world. This ain't a game, this is the real shit. She's gonna get herself into a situation, where she can't press reset. Mark my words."

Another similar reply had come from Rash Rider and his co-driver from Rich Racing, and pretty much 75 percent of the grid was saying the same thing. The only exceptions had been Silverstreak from the Ford team, as well the Motosuki Motorsports drivers, who had been extremely respectful and nice in their interview, being Japanese. They had said that while they had to wait a little more, Sunset's performance had been great so far, and that she had quite a chance.

As Sunset headed to her car, Comet Flash gave her the latest data. "Alright, it's quite hot outside, the temperature's around 35 degrees Celsius right now. The car's AC will be on for a bit, until it cools down inside. It automatically re-engages at 32 degrees Celsius. Since it's almost summer here, keep hydrated. Drink a few bottles of water after every session. You all ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be." said Sunset.

"Okay, go, go go!" said Flash, as Sunset began heading out, just as Q1 began. Soon, she was making hot laps on the hot track that was Jeddah. It didn't help that it was also extremely humid, Jeddah being a coastal city. Soon, Sunset could feel the heat getting to her, even though her car's AC was working overtime to keep her cool. The temperature even soared up to 40 degrees at one point, which was hot enough that Rash Rider almost fainted in his car because the AC did not activate in time.

However, Sunset somehow made it through, and by the end of Q1, Sunset and Hot Rocket had both made it, in 6th and 9th places respectively. Rash Rider was eliminated after he came into the pits with heatstroke, taking him out of the session, and Silverstreak ended up qualifying right behind Hot Rocket, in 15th place. Solar Wind also made it, in 3rd place.

Q2 began 15 minutes after Q1, and the high temperature still wasn't doing much good. In fact, a few fans had already fainted in the paddocks because of the heat, and despite the temperature starting to reduce in the afternoon, it was still quite hot. In fact, one of the pit crews from Motosuki Motorsports had violently thrown up, and had to be taken to a doctor.

Despite this, Q2 was not ended, and by the end of it, Sunset was able to finish in 10th, but Hot Rocket had been disqualified, qualifying in 13th, and Solar Wind had managed to finish in 4th place, followed by Silverstreak in 5th. Finally, another 15 minutes later, Q3 began, and this time, the competition was more intense. Everyone still in qualifying wanted the top 5 spots, and Sunset eagerly wanted those spots, considering that she had to make one top 5 finish before the 5th race of the season to keep her FIA racing license.

Q3 was intense, but the high temperature, which had since dropped from 40 to around 31, was still quite intense, and the humidity also wasn't helping either. In fact, Sunset came close to violently puking on her fourth lap, having not drunk as much water as she should have in the pits, but she somehow, with a lot of willpower, was able to continue driving, albeit with a reduced pace. By the end of Q3 and qualifying, Sunset had managed to qualify in 10th place, while Silverstreak had qualified in 7th, and Solar Wind in 2nd.

When Sunset pulled her car into the Thunderbolt Motorsports into the pits, the first thing she did after getting out of her car was run to the toilet to puke, due to mild dehydration. Thankfully, that was soon fixed after a few bottles of water, and some ORS. The team then retreated to their hotel nearby, to escape from the heat, and to prepare for the race the next day.

24TH MARCH 2024

------CORNICHE CIRCUIT, JEDDAH------

As race day dawned in Saudi Arabia, the fans came heading out. Despite the fact that Saudi Arabia was a hot Muslim-dominated country, no matter what race, religion, or country they were from, everyone was here to watch the race. In fact, even people from countries such as Iran had come, since this was the only chance they would get to see their heroes in person.

As the drivers got ready for the race, which started at exactly 4:00pm local time, Sunset as usual, listened to her favorite Countess Coloratura music before the race, to relax her nerves. Despite this, she was still quite nervous, as she had a bad feeling that both Solar Wind and Rash Rider were going to pull some dirty tricks on the track today.

Soon, the drivers were all in their cars, and as they began their formation lap, this time, the safety car wasn't accompanying them, since that was only for the first ever race. As they continued their formation lap, a large aerobatic display organised by the Royal Saudi Air Force was conducted, where multiple F-15 jet fighters, and an airliner, a Boeing 777, made a flyby of the track, as well as an amazing stunt show by the jets.

Soon after this display ended, the cars were all at the starting line, on their respective positions, ready for the race. At exactly 4:00pm, the 79-lap race began, and the start was intense. Sunset had a not-so-great start, dropping from 10th to 11th, while Hot Rocket had gone from 13th to 12th, and Rash Rider had gone from last place, all the way to 17th place on the first lap itself.

By the fifth lap, Sunset had managed to gain another spot, getting 10th place back, while Rash Rider had gone from 17th to 14th. Hot Rocket had also gained a position, and was now right behind Sunset, while Silverstreak and Solar Wind were duking it out for 5th place, Solar Wind having dropped three positions. The temperature was still high, but not as high as it was during qualifying, so everyone was still going great as of now. However, the competition was intense, and no one was willing to give up their positions.

The next twelve laps were relatively uneventful. By the 25th lap, everyone was coming in to pit, except Rash Rider, and a driver from the Italian team. Everyone swapped from soft tires to medium tires, and soon, everyone was back out again. During her pit stop, Sunset had dropped from 10th to 12th, Hot Rocket had gained a position, going from 11th to 10th, and Silverstreak had dropped as well, going from 5th place all the way down to 9th. Rash Rider had gained a position, going from 12th place to 11th place.

Over the next few laps, they all began gaining positions once more. Sunset came back with a bang, going from 12th all the way into 9th place, and Hot Rocket was able to get to 7th place. Rash Rider also went in the pits, dropping from 11th back to 13th. Solar Wind was currently in 4th place, while Silverstreak was now duking it out with Sunset for 8th place. However, on the 31st lap of the race, there was an incident, when one of the Lamborghini Huracan Evo GT3 Evo 2s driven by Lazante Racing, the Italian team, wrecked after he went too wide on a corner and smacked into a divider, bringing out the safety car.

The safety car was out for around two laps, after which the wrecked car was cleared, and the driver, who was not injured, was taken back to his team's pits. Soon, the race resumed as normal, and all was going well. On the 40th lap, Sunset finally overtook Silverstreak, going into 8th place. Hot Rocket had also gotten into 6th place, so she was doing quite good. The battle continued between the duo for another 9 laps, after which Sunset managed to get into 7th place, overtaking the McLaren 720S GT3 Evo in front of her. However, the McLaren driver started another battle with Sunset, which continued all the way to the 58th lap, on which all of the drivers came into pit. In this pit stop, 50 percent of the drivers, including Silverstreak and Sunset, swapped for another set of mediums, while most of the others took on a set of hards.

This time, Sunset didn't lose her position, as her pit stop was quite fast, and she was soon back out again. However, the race was now entering its climax, with only 21 laps left to go before the end. The competition was even fiercer now, as she and the McLaren driver were competing with Solar Wind, who had dropped to 6th place, and Sunset could tell that woman was not willing to give up her place.

The battle continued between the trio until the 65th lap, where on Turn 4, Solar Wind made an aggressive overtake, which caused Sunset to spin out, and this caused an annoyed Sunset to drop all the way back to 8th. Sunset instantly got back on the race, but the damage was now done, and by the time she got back on track, quite a bit of distance was between her Solar Wind, and the McLaren driver.

There went her second chance at a top 5 finish, thought Sunset, as she struggled to catch up to them, her tires starting to get quite worn down. Finally, on the 77th lap, she began closing the gap, but two laps was not enough to catch them before the end of the race. Sunset finished this one in 8th, while Hot Rocket finished in 5th. Silverstreak finished in 10th, and Rash Rider had managed to finish in 9th.

Despite this, the Thunderbolt team were quite happy, considering that this was a big improvement over their last race. Both their drivers had successfully managed to finish in the top 10, and get points for the team. After the race, Sunset gave an interview to the media, and the team packed up for their return to the US. The next race was in two weeks, which would give Sunset some time to prepare, and catch up on school work. It would also give her time to come up with a new racing strategy, to get that elusive top 5 finish. Soon, it would be hers.

Round 3: Bahrain

6TH APRIL 2024

------BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT------

It was now almost 5:00pm in Bahrain, which meant it was almost midnight back in Canterlot City. In the Thunderbolt Motorsports pits, Sunset and her pit crew were getting ready for qualifying of the third race of the season. It had been two weeks since their last race in Jeddah. During this time, Sunset had caught up on her schoolwork, and had also stopped by the Thunderbolt Motorsports headquarters, to look at the new strategies that Comet Flash had created.

Comet Flash had also been hard at work over the last two weeks, making new racing strategies to try and get around the dirty tricks being used by drivers such as Rash Rider and Comet Flash. He had also been Sunset practice more of these strategies on the simulator whenever she was not doing her schoolwork. It was hard, but Sunset was enjoying the challenge of this. Despite the fact that she had a test on the day they had left for Bahrain, she had been able to study and take it on Soaring Surfer's private jet, through it's inflight Wi-Fi system.

The team was getting ready to head out, and by now, Sunset was pretty much accustomed to the high temperatures of the Middle East, this having been her third time here now. As the team got ready for Q1, Sunset listened to her music as usual, to cool down before a race. It had become a tradition now, as Hot Rocket was also doing it, so it was a driver tradition now. The team was hoping to get a top 5 finish this race, as they needed it so that Sunset could continue racing, and it had to be before or on the fifth race of the season.

They had half an hour till the start of Q1, so the drivers went inside to suit up, and get in the cars for qualifying. Comet Flash had made their new strategy with the help of a friend, who was another former racer from Comet Flash's glory days. Comet Flash and him had collaborated to create their new racing strategy, and it had been well done. Unlike their old strategy, which was basically be aggressive the whole race, this new strategy was to be passive and defensive for most of the race, and become more aggressive near the end, to conserve fuel and tires for one big push near the end. However, this would only work if they got a good spot in qualifying, which was what they were aiming for today.

Soon, at exactly 3:00pm, Q1 started, and the drivers headed out once more, as they hit the track. Sunset and Hot Rocket were out with a renewed vigour, as Sunset's performance kept improving every race, and Flash had calculated that the team would get a podium finish, or even a win, by the sixth or seventh race in the season. However, the main obstacles in their way were Rash Rider, High Roller, and Solar Wind. These two drivers were the ones who were trying to make sure Sunset did not get that top 5 finish. He had already told Sunset to keep a close eye on those three drivers, but he was also keeping an eye on the pit crews from Nissan and Rich Racing, just in case.

Q1 went extremely well, and Sunset and Hot Rocket were both able to continue to Q2, finishing Q1 in 6th and 4th respectively, and so did the Rich Racing and Ford drivers. However, Solar Wind was unable to finish Q1, after her 400Z GT500 somehow managed to send a piston to the Moon, leaving a circular-shaped hole in its bonnet, which Sunset saw as she passed the disabled 400Z, since the failure had occurred in front of her. She also saw how unhappy Solar Wind was on the big screen, punching her car in anger for quitting on her like that.

Q2 started 15 minutes after Q1, and in Q2, both of the drivers of Thunderbolt Motorsports made it to Q3, both finishing in the top 10, along with the drivers of Rich Racing. Q3 was relatively uneventful, and Sunset managed to qualify in 6th place, followed by Hot Rocket in 7th. Rash Rider and High Roller managed to qualify in 1st and 2nd respectively. Sunset was eagerly hoping to finally get that top 5 finish in this race, and considering that she had qualified in 6th place, she was looking good for it.

7TH APRIL 2024

------BAHRAIN INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT------

As race day dawned on the country of Bahrain, the excitement among the motorsports fans and people who would be watching the race was growing. This was the closest Sunset Shimmer, gamer-turned-racer, had come to a top 5 finish. All of the simracing community, the gaming community, and a small part of the racing community, was rooting for her to get that finish, since it would prove that video gamers weren't actually useless after all, and to show that they could do something, and to break the stereotypes about gamers.

As the teams all got ready for the race day, everyone was also wondering how Solar Wind would come back to form after her engine blew out the previous day. Due to that, Solar Wind had qualified in last place, and while her usual car still hadn't been repaired, since a whole new engine had to be flown in for it, the Nissan team had a third car on standby, so she would be driving that today.

As the starting of 6:00pm local time in Bahrain came closer, the excitement kept growing. Sunset knew that despite the fact that it was late at night back home in Canterlot City, her friends would probably be trying everything to catch the race, even if it meant missing school the next day. The pre-start preparations were now routine for her. Around half an hour before the race, Sunset finishing suiting up and readying herself for the race. Then, she listened to music for a few minutes, and then, headed out to her car, which was already on the track. As usual, once pre-race preparation was completed, a couple of minutes before the formation lap was started, the cars were started up, and all of the pit crews began moving away from the main track. This was her first night race, so Sunset was definitely excited.

Soon, the formation lap began, and Sunset and the other cars were away, headlights glowing. This being her first night race, Sunset was a little slower than usual, just to get her eyes adjusted to driving at night, despite the track being lit up. Soon, the cars were all at the starting line once more, ready to race. At exactly 6:03pm local time, the race started, and all 20 cars were off the starting line, in the first night race of the season, which would last 75 laps.

The first laps were extremely exciting, as Sunset stayed in 6th place, but Hot Rocket directly got into 7th place off the bat. Silverstreak, who had qualified in 12th, moved up a position on the second lap, but High Roller dropped to 4th place, while Rash Rider stayed in 1st. Even Solar Wind had gained, going from 20th to 17th within the first five laps. However, as the race progressed, she continued to gain, going to 15th place by the 10th lap.

As the race progressed, Sunset stayed in 6th, but she and Hot Rocket were having a battle for that place, even as Sunset pushed ahead, trying to get into the top 5. Meanwhile, Solar Wind continued gaining, overtaking two people in one go on the 17th lap to get in 13th place. However, she was clearly aiming to at least get a top 10 finish, and was not willing to give that up. As the race continued on, the excitement was high, and it was clearly continuing to grow, as the battle between Sunset and Hot Rocket grew more intense. Both of the Thunderbolt drivers were tussling for that 6th place spot. Silverstreak had also gained some places, and was now in 9th. The only car separating him from the two Thunderbolt cars was one of the Lazante Racing Lamborghinis.

However, on the 21st lap, the race was temporarily yellow-flagged after Silverstreak's teammate suffered a crash, where on Turn 10, he was going a little too fast, and while trying to make the tight turn, he made a stupid mistake by failing to slow down enough in time, and in his attempt to make the turn, his Mustang GT3 ended up going into the gravel, and being a rear-wheel drive, the Mustang began spinning the second it hit the gravel, and slammed right into the barriers rear-first at almost 100 miles per hour. Thankfully, he was okay and could get out of the car, which was damaged beyond repair from the high-speed impact.

While the race was yellow-flagged for the next few laps, most drivers took the opportunity to pit, going in to change from softs to mediums. However, under their new strategy, the Thunderbolt drivers changed from softs to hards, which would last longer, and reduce the need to pit for a while. Despite the slower pace during the yellow flag, the sound of roaring engines reverberated through the night air of Bahrain, exciting the crowd even more.

Soon, around five minutes after the crash, on the 23rd lap, and after the gravel was cleared off the track, the yellow flag period ended, and the race resumed normally, with renewed vigour. Sunset found it a little difficult to drive with hard tires at first, as this was the first time she had raced on hard times since her training at RaceWorld Academy. However, after the tires were nicely warmed up, it was a little easier to do so. The battle for 6th place continued between the two Thunderbolt drivers continued, as they had not lost their positions when they pitted.

As the battle continued, Sunset began feeling more confident than ever, as the driver who was in 5th place was in her sights, the other Lamborghini Huracan GT3 Evo 2 driven by Lazante Racing. As she closed in on the Huracan, Hot Rocket was also up her exhaust pipe, trying hard to overtake Sunset. Despite them being teammates, they were also quite competitive, so they were not giving up without a fight. However, this was now about to become a four-way battle, as on the 30th lap, Silverstreak had overtaken the other Lazante driver, and he was now on Hot Rocket's exhaust pipe, trying to overtake the two Thunderbolt drivers.

As the four-way battle continued, on the 34th lap, Sunset finally found a window on Turn 4 to overtake the Lamborghini in front of her, and as she swiftly overtook him, she was now in 5th place. Now all she had to do was maintain this position, or even get into the top 4, for the rest of the race. Easy-peasy, thought Sunset, as she now focused on holding the Lazante driver off, as he tried to take back his 5th place spot.

However, the battle between Sunset and the Lazante driver ended on the 40th lap, when one of his wheels started to wobble, and that started to affect his performance, and caused him to get even slower. Soon, Hot Rocket had also overtaken him, and by the 44th lap, he had fallen from 6th all the way to 10th place, as the tire wobbled even more, causing him to slow down even more, and go in for a pit stop to fix that, if it even was fixable. Soon, Sunset saw on the board that he was out of the race, due to some suspension damage to his car that had caused the wheel to start wobbling. Now, only 18 drivers were left in the race.

Sunset was doing quite well out there, and now, Rash Rider's teammate, High Roller, who was still in 4th place, was in her sights. She was looking quite good for a 4th place finish, and hopefully, that was what she would get. As the race continued, she began closing the distance between her and High Roller, and by the 52nd lap, she was just a second behind him. However, as she came closer to him and prepared for the overtake, High Roller began driving more defensively, to make sure Sunset did not pass him at all costs.

In fact, on Turn 13, just as Sunset was about to make a move to overtake him, he made an extremely dangerous maneuver, and cut Sunset off, preventing her from taking 4th place. That frustrated Sunset, but soon, she was in 2nd place, as everyone else had come in to pit. However, by the 58th lap, Sunset had fallen back to 5th, as she had also had to pit, swapping out her hard tires for a set of softs, to make that last push for 4th place. Soon, the final push began, as the end of the race neared. There were only 17 laps left, and Sunset had to make that count.

Soon, she was back behind High Roller, trying to overtake him once more. However, just like the previous time, he was being aggressive and extremely reckless, trying to prevent her from overtaking. However, finally, on the 66th lap, on Turn 13, Sunset finally overtook him, as he used Rash Rider's slamming the door move on her, which she had learned how to counter from the half-ton of times Rash had used it on her. Sunset was finally in 4th place. That made her extremely happy, as Sunset pushed even harder, trying to open up the gap between her and High Roller, and possibly even get into 3rd place and take a podium.

However, the top 3 drivers were still way ahead of Sunset, and tire wear was starting to slow Sunset down, so there was possibly no way she could catch up to them, with under 8 laps remaining. Plus, High Roller was also starting to catch back up to Sunset, so she had her hands full, to keep her 4th place position secure. As he continued to catch up, Sunset began driving defensively as well, and the battle recommenced on the 72nd lap. With just 3 laps to go, Sunset was not willing to let High Roller overtake her. The excitement in the spectator area was at an all-time high, as they watched this battle happen in front of their eyes.

However, on the very last lap, on Turn 14, High Roller won the battle. Sunset's tire wear caused her to lightly skid, which gave High Roller the window he needed to take back 4th, which he took. An annoyed Sunset instantly hit the gas, but it was too late, and the damage had already been done, as High Roller crossed the finish line just half a second ahead of Sunset. Sunset was especially unhappy about this, but Comet Flash calmed her down on the radio. "Hey, you did good, and, the FIA has just informed us that you'll get to keep your racing license, as you fulfilled your end of our deal with them. Plus, a top 5 finish, that's quite good for a newbie. I have a good feeling you'll end up on the podium next race." said Flash, which calmed Sunset down.

Hot Rocket had also finished well, finishing in 7th place, followed by Silverstreak in 8th. Solar Wind had made an amazing comeback throughout the race, but had ended up finishing in 11th place, and Sunset could see her fuming off into the Nissan pits after pulling in after the race had finished. The second Sunset got out of her car, her entire pit crew, Comet Flash, and Soaring Surfer, were all cheering for her, happy that they had finished in the top 5. In fact, some of the pit crew even hugged Sunset, since they were all so happy. This lifted Sunset's spirits, and she watched the podium celebrate.

Rash Rider was the winner this time, and wow, was he happy about it. The 23 year old British driver, with red skin that almost matched the shade of his Ferrari, and bleached blond hair, looked as if he had just won the World Championship, the way he was celebrating. However, Sunset didn't like him at all, there was just an aura about him that didn't seem right. Anyways, as the celebrations continued, Sunset and her team decided to head to their hotel, as it was almost 9:00pm in the night here in Bahrain. Their goal was to get a podium, by the next race.

Round 4: Delhi

13TH APRIL 2024

------BUDDH INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, DELHI------

It was now almost 2:30pm here in Delhi, the capital of India, which meant it was almost midnight back home in Canterlot City. Sunset Shimmer and the Thunderbolt Motorsports team were getting ready for Q1. After close to a month of racing in the Middle East, it was nice to be in a country like India for a change. This was their last race in Asia for a while, though, as they would be going to Europe from next race onwards.

The Buddh International Circuit was a track that had only now found its way back on the calendars of motorsport events. In fact, the country of India had only recently gotten its first major motorsports events in 10 years, since the last F1 Indian Grand Prix in 2013. The country, despite being the world's most populous, and despite a lot of motorsport fans, had not gotten any major motorsports events until the previous year, with both Formula E and MotoGP racing in India for their first times. In fact, now rumours were abuzz that Formula 1 would also start racing in India again from 2025 onwards.

Today, this would be the only major motorsports event happening in India in 2024, as MotoGP's India race for 2024 had been cancelled due to weather reasons, as the India race was planned for September, when it would be extremely hot in Delhi, so it had been cancelled for this year, but it would return in 2025 as the season opener.

As Sunset got ready for qualifying, Flash told her, "Sunset, this race, we have to get a podium finish. I know that you're keeping your license, but don't become lazy. You don't want to ruin your performance just four races into the season. Remember, if you get lazy, you get sloppy. You get sloppy, you lose races. Also, the crowd is getting wild. Majority of the fans here in India are mainly divided between you and Rash Rider, so there's already been a fight or two. Let's give your Indian fans what they want, since most of them won't get to see you race again until next year, if we're even around then."

"I sure am going to give them a show." said Sunset, as she got into her car, and started it up, so to get some quick data, before they headed out for Q1. Practice the previous day had gone well, and Sunset really liked this track. It wasn't her favorite, but it was up there, considering she had never even heard of the Buddh International Circuit before. She didn't think that India would be a place to host a Formula 1 race, until she had seen this track.

At exactly 3:00pm, Q1 began, and everyone headed out. Most of the cars were handling in the heat, since it was summer in India now, and the temperatures were quite high right now, at least to the drivers who were from America and Europe. Sunset thought about that Indian trainee from RaceWorld Academy, Cumin Masala. Sunset hadn't really kept in touch with her since their graduation, and wondered what she was up to.

Sunset and Hot Rocket absolutely crushed Q1, and Sunset finished Q1 in 5th place, while Hot Rocket finished in 7th place. Both of the two Rich Racing drivers finished Q1 in the top two spots, Silverstreak finished in 12th, and Solar Wind, who was now back, finished in 8th. Q2 began 15 minutes later, and this time, there was an incident around 4 minutes in, as one of the 720S GT3 Evos from the McLaren Racing team pulled over on the side of the track on Turn 4, after his team told him that smoke was coming from the engine bay, and he said that smoke was also coming into the cabin. Once he pulled over, just as he opened the door to get out of his car, flames began pouring out of the engine bay.

Thankfully, the driver was able to get out and away from the car quickly, and track marshals were able to extinguish the fire before it consumed the whole car. However, the session was temporarily red-flagged, while the fire was extinguished, and the car, now with its engine badly burned, had to be loaded on a truck and towed off, and some of the engine parts shed during the fire had to be removed from the track.

During the red flag period, when all of the cars were in the pits, Sunset took the chance to stretch her legs, and get out of her car, and also get a bit of hydration. Due to the red flag period, the times were a little disrupted, but, it went pretty well. Both of the Thunderbolt drivers finished Q2 in the top 10, Sunset in 6th and Hot Rocket in 7th. The Rich Racing drivers again finished in the top two spots, and Silverstreak was disqualified after he finished Q2 in 11th. Solar Wind finished Q2 in 5th.

Q3 was relatively quiet after the McLaren fire, but there was still a lot of intense competition. After quite some struggle, Q3 ended, with some amazing results. Sunset qualified in 4th, followed by Solar Wind in 5th, and Hot Rocket in 9th. Rash Rider had managed to qualify in pole position, but his teammate, High Roller, had made a few mistakes during his hot lap, that had caused him to end up qualifying in 6th place.

After that, qualifying was over, and all the teams could go back to their hotels for the night before the race. Thunderbolt did just that, and went off to the hotel nearby for a delicious and spicy meal of Indian food, and for some final extra planning before the race.

14TH APRIL 2024

------BUDDH INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT, DELHI------

It was now almost 4:00pm here in Delhi, which meant it was almost 1:30am in the morning back home in Canterlot City. Sunset Shimmer, Hot Rocket, and the Thunderbolt Motorsports pit crew were all out on the grid at the Buddh International Circuit, and this was going to be a long race, lasting a total of 87 laps. As Thunderbolt got prepared, Sunset was hoping she would do extremely good in this race. She had checked her social media profile, and majority of her fans were from the USA, but India was a close second, and she didn't want to disappoint all of her fans.

As she got ready, she saw someone walking up to them, not dressed in any pit crew wear. That was odd. Fans weren't allowed on the track at all. But was no one was stopping this person, whom Sunset recognized. It was Cumin Masala, from her RaceWorld Academy days. "How you doing, Shimmer?" asked Cumin.

"I wasn't expecting to see you at my race, Cumin! But how'd you get onto the actual track?" asked Sunset.

"Well, Comet Flash called me. I live in Delhi, so the second he called me, I came over here, and he got me in."

"Well, what are you doing in the racing world?"

"Not much, really. My ma and pa wanted me to study for IIT, that's an engineering college here, but now, after RaceWorld Academy, I've been doing work as a reserve driver in WRC, and I've got an active spot in WRC3, the same series as Powerslide, so I'm racing there. That's all."

"So you're gonna stay and watch the race, I suppose?"

"Yup, I'm going to watch the race, and I'll be watching it from your pits, so I have the good seats for this."

"Enjoy it, then. This is going to be my first podium, I guarantee it."

"Don't get too overconfident. You do realise Comet Sir thought us that. We call teachers here as 'Sir' or 'Ma'am', by the way, that's way I called him Comet Sir."

"Oh, alright. See you after the race."

"See you too." said Cumin, as she headed back to the pits, and Sunset began final preparations for the race. A couple of minutes before the race, the formation lap began, and it was basically uneventful. The cars pulled up to the starting line, and got in their grid places. At exactly 4:00pm, it was lights out, and the 87-lap race began. The first lap was quite eventful, with a three-way battle beginning on Turn 1 for 3rd place, between Sunset, Solar Wind, and the Motosuki Motorsports Lexus RC F GT3 in 3rd place.

This was a battle where no one was willing to give up, especially the Japanese driver, as his team had suffered quite a rough start to the season, and they were already lacking in points in the standings. He was quite good, but his two-door sedan was relatively heavy compared to the sleek sports cars, and it was a drawback for him, which led to Sunset and Solar Wind overtaking him by the 4th lap. However, he was still on Solar Wind's tail, and soon, it was a battle between the two Japanese cars, Nissan versus Lexus, sports car versus GT car.

As the battle continued behind her, Sunset, who was now in 3rd, continued pushing towards 2nd place, which was occupied by one of the Lamborghinis from Lazante Racing. This guy was again, not willing to give up his place, so it was going to be nonstop battles for this entire race, realised Sunset, as she continued to battle the Lazante driver. This battle continued all the way until the 28th lap, with Sunset and the Lazante driver occassionally passing each other. Hot Rocket also gained positions, going from 9th all the way to 6th. Silverstreak went from 11th to 8th, and High Roller dropped to 7th.

Finally, on the 28th lap, Sunset and most of the other drivers came in to pit, as usual, switching from soft tires to medium tires. This caused her position to drop from 3rd to 5th, but she would easily regain those positions, thought Sunset, as she left the pits. Within the next 10 laps, Sunset was able to regain her 3rd place spot, and soon, she was back behind the Lazante driver for Round 2 of their battle, as the two European sports cars began duking it out for 2nd place.

However, on the 43rd lap, Thunderbolt Motorsports suffered a huge setback, when High Roller's Ferrari rear ended Hot Rocket's Porsche 911 on Turn 16, damaging both cars beyond repair, and taking them both out of the race. That was an extremely hard one for Thunderbolt, now having only one driver left in this race, and being their first DNF, just four races into the season.

"Okay, Sunset, it's all on you now. Remember, you have to get that podium finish." said Flash, encouraging Sunset to push even harder against the Lazante driver, to try and overtake him.

Soon, that overtake finally came. On the 50th lap, Sunset finally overtook the Lazante driver, and began trying to put some pace between him, and trying to gain on Rash Rider, who was 10 seconds ahead of her, and maybe even take home a win. However, just on the 61st lap, when Sunset was still 5 seconds behind Rash Rider, she had to pit again, having run more than 30 laps on her old tires.

Her tires were swapped for a set of hards, so that Sunset wouldn't have to pit again near the end of the race, and she was sent out again, and somehow was able to retain her 2nd place spot for this pit stop. Silverstreak had also gained a little more, going from 8th to 6th, and Solar Wind was now in 3rd, and was gaining on Sunset. On the 70th lap, the battle between the two women drivers reignited, and it was fiercer than ever. They did not give up their spots, and it continued until the end of the race, even when both of their cars' tires were heavily worn down. It got even more fiercer on the final lap.

Rash Rider was now out of Sunset's sights, as she had to focus on Solar Wind first. The battle got fiercer, and the two drivers were duking each other out. It was Germany versus Japan all over again, this time, in a more peaceful way on a racetrack. Sunset was still in 2nd, and as they entered the final turn before the main straight, she pressed her gas pedal to the metal, and her car shot forward, with Solar Wind still chasing her. Solar Wind began an overtake, but wasn't able to get into 2nd before they crossed the finish line in a photo finish, at exactly 6:49pm. Silverstreak ended up finishing the race in 5th place.

As Sunset came into the pits after the end of the race, her whole team came out to hug her to celebrate her first podium, including Hot Rocket, Flash, Surfer, and Cumin Masala. Since Sunset was underage, the podium celebrations wouldn't be conducted with alcohol, but using club soda instead. Even Silverstreak, the Motosuki drivers, and a couple of others stopped by to congratulate her first podium.

As Sunset climbed onto the podium, she got slight dirty looks from Rash Rider and Solar Wind, but they quickly went away as the celebrations began, and once that was over, and all of the three podium standers were soaking with club soda, they ended, and the media and fan interviews began. Sunset normally wasn't willing, but today was an exception, and she was over the moon about her first podium. At long last, it had finally come.

Round 5: Shanghai

20TH APRIL 2024

------SHANGHAI INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT------

It was now almost 10:00am in Shanghai, the biggest city in China, which meant it was almost 10:00pm back home in Canterlot City. Qualifying for the China race wouldn't start for a few hours, so all of the drivers were currently in their hotel rooms, mentally preparing themselves for the race. Sunset was busy trying to talk with her friends, but the problem was that due to China's strict censorship laws, the app she usually used, MyStable, could not be used. However, Comet Flash had purchased VPN subscriptions for the whole crew before they had left the US, so Sunset was using that to access MyStable in China.

Sunset began a video chat with her friends, who were online, and would probably chat with her until they went to sleep. "Hey Sunset! How are you able to talk to us? I thought MyStable was banned in China." said Rainbow Dash.

"I'm using a VPN." replied Sunset, simply.

"Oh, alright then! When are they going to race in the US? So far, no one from the school has been able to watch you race in person, since all of the races so far have been in Asia. Europe may be possible, but Asia isn't possible for most of us."

"Well, after the Shanghai race, we'll be racing in Europe for a couple of months, so you can see that, but we may also have a race in the US, so you might just be able to see that one in person."

"Sweet, we're definitely gonna try and see that! Also, I heard that a large Chinese car company owns the track you're racing at?" said Twilight.

"Yep, SAIC Motors, one of the biggest car companies in China, sponsors the track, so its also known as the SAIC International Circuit. SAIC doesn't make any cars under their own brand, but makes and sells cars all over, under the names of other brands. Fun fact, half of the cars here in China seem to be copies of American or European brands. I'll send you some pictures of a few that SAIC is exhibiting at the track. They look very similar to American and European cars."

"Not surprised. Their electronics are pretty much carbon-copies of the big-name brands. Anyways, qualifying is at 3:00pm over there, right?" said Twilight.

"Yeah, but it'll be 3:00am over in Canterlot for you guys, so you probably won't be able to watch the qualifying live. You'll probably have to watch just the highlights."

"It's fine, we can't do much about that. Also, how's your studying for our final exams next month? How did you take all those tests, despite the fact that you weren't here for quite a few?"

"Perks of getting to travel on a private jet. It has in-flight Wi-Fi, which means I can take a test from the plane. I usually study onboard and take them from my hotel room, but sometimes I have to take them on the plane. Anti-cheat software has been installed on my laptop so I can take the tests. I should be able to take the final exams physically, though."

"Well, it's a shame we can't do our group study sessions in person for some time, but I hope you'll be able to do one when you're back in the US. Also, how's your boyfriend doing? And Sonata?"

"Well, Powerslide's currently in Croatia, as he also happens to be a WRC3 race there this weekend. Also, Sonata doesn't have another race until next month, when they race in Miami, so she was thinking of coming down to Shanghai to watch me race, but the Chinese embassy wouldn't grant her a passport. Shame, truly. She was quite bummed about it."

"Oh, well. Anyways, you talked about your relationship heating up yet? When is that going to happen?"

"Look, I turn 18 only in August, and we aren't taking the next step yet. For now, it's going to be a casual, friendly, romance. Also, I have to get ready for qualifying now, it starts in 5 hours, and apparently, Soaring Surfer, the team owner, has an important announcement for us, so I have to go now. Talk later."

"See you the next time you're back in the US, Sunset! We miss you over here!"

"Don't worry, girls, I'll be back soon." said Sunset, ending the video call, and leaving her room to hear the announcement, which was in the hotel's conference room. It was now 10:30am. Soaring Surfer and Comet Flash were already here. Soon, Hot Rocket, and the other people from the Thunderbolt Motorsports team showed up, and the announcement.

"Well, team, you're probably wondering why I called you down here, even though qualifying doesn't begin for another four hours. Well, you know how we originally had no slots for reserve drivers at the beginning of the season?"

Everyone nodded at that. Since all the reserve driver slots were full, they couldn't even get a single reserve driver on their team, so if any one of the two Thunderbolt drivers was out of the season for a few races due to an injury or something like that, they would have to race with only one driver, and get only half of the points they normally would.

"Well, we don't need to worry about that. One of the reserve drivers from E-Power Motorsports, the team that's running the NSXs, has quit, and the FIA guys gave us that spot, so we can assign a single reserve driver to our team. It will be either Powerslide or Sonata Dusk. Most likely Sonata, as she has been doing more track racing than Powerslide, but it will be either of them. Also, the team has been asked to participate in the Goodwood Festival of Speed in July, so we'll be showing off our car there. Plus, we have been invited to a large drift event in Ireland that will be happening next month, so that's gonna be insane!" said Surfer.

"That seems like fun, but our cars aren't meant for drifting. How are we gonna compete in that Ireland event?" asked Hot Rocket.

"Well, for that one, the cars will be provided by one of our sponsors, which happens to be a Porsche tuner. We'll be using those in the drift event. Now, let's get to qualifying, we have a lot of work to do." said Surfer, dismissing the whole team, who began heading to the track, and towards their pits. The second they reached, they got some insider information from Comet Flash.

"Watch out for that other team, the one that's running the BMW M8s. Their main sponsor happens to be a large Chinese firm, and this is their home track, so they will be gunning for a win at this race. They'll be more aggressive than normal, so I'll keep an eye on their drivers."

The team continued preparing for qualifying over the next few hours, running the engines of the cars so they wouldn't be cold, and would be properly run in when qualifying started. At 2:00pm, the drivers suited up, and got ready to hit the track. Exactly an hour later, Q1 began, and all of the cars hit the track. The session would have been relatively calm, had it not been for the fact that the Chinese-backed team, known as German Motorsports, was driving extremely aggressively and recklessly. In fact, during Q1, Sunset and Silverstreak almost get sent off the track by their BMW M8 GTEs, who were gunning for that top 5.

Q1 ended well, with Sunset finishing it in 7th place, and Silverstreak in 5th. The two Rich Racing drivers finished it in 2nd and 3rd, while Solar Wind finished it in 4th. The German Motorsports drivers had finished Q1 in 6th and 12th respectively, just behind Hot Rocket, who had finished Q1 in 11th. Q2 began 15 minutes later, and it was just as intense as Q1, but this time, Hot Rocket was disqualified, finishing it in 12th place. Silverstreak narrowly missed getting disqualified, finishing Q2 in 10th place, just 0.001 seconds above the person in 11th. Sunset was able to finish in 8th, followed by one of the German Motorsports drivers, while the Rich Racing drivers, followed by Solar Wind, finished in the top 3.

Finally, Q3 began 15 minutes later, and the German Motorsports drivers were more aggressive than ever. They really wanted to qualify in the top 5, and they would not let anything take that away from them. They wanted to do something good at their home track. However, that effort would go in vain, as they ended up qualifying in 9th and 10th, behind Sunset, who qualified in 8th. Silverstreak qualified in 5th, and the Rich Racing drivers qualified in 3rd and 4th, while Solar Wind qualified in 6th.

After that, qualifying was over, and all of the teams and drivers headed back to their hotel, to get ready for race day the next day, as the Sun set on the city of Shanghai.

21ST APRIL 2024

------SHANGHAI INTERNATIONAL CIRCUIT------

It was now almost 4:00pm in Shanghai, which meant it was almost 4:00am back in Canterlot City. At the Shanghai International Circuit, all of the cars were lined up on the grid for today's race, which would last a total of 88 laps. This race was going to be especially intense, and a majority of the fans were gamers, which was not surprising, as China's gaming industry was one of the biggest on Earth, and majority of these gamers were Sunset's fans, so Sunset knew she had to put up a show today.

She was already in her Porsche, getting ready for the race. She was hoping to get a win this time, after her 2nd place finish in their race in India last week, so she was feeling that she was on a roll, considering how her performance in their last few races had been. This was hopefully, going to be the first win for Sunset Shimmer.

As Sunset got ready for the race, she wondered who would the new Thunderbolt Motorsports reserve driver. She was hoping it would be Powerslide, but she was also hoping it would be Sonata Dusk. Soon, her pit crew backed off, as the formation lap was about to begin. The formation lap began at around 3:56pm, and the cars set off. The formation lap was extremely uneventful, and at 3:59pm, all of the cars lined back up on the grid.

At exactly 4:00pm, it was lights out, and the race started. The competition was extremely aggressive right off the start. Sunset instantly was roped into a battle with the two German Motorsports drivers, but they had one big disadvantage. Their BMW M8s, originally being grand touring cars, were much heavier and bigger than the light sports cars that were competing in this series, so they were slower by a second or two. However, the heavy weight meant that they could easily cause quite a bit of damage to the other cars in an accident.

The battle continued for the first 10 laps, after which Sunset was able to overtake from 8th and go into 7th, leaving the German Motorsport drivers battling the driver who had been overtaken by Sunset. However, he was soon overtaken, due to their reckless driving, and they were now in a four-way battle for 6th, between Sunset, Solar Wind, and the two German Motorsports drivers. The battle got more fierce, as stretched out over the next 12 laps. Finally, on the 22nd lap, on Turn 2, Sunset attempted to overtake Solar Wind. However, the overtake didn't work, and Wind blocked Sunset quite well, preventing her from taking 6th place.

The battle continued, and the German Motorsports driver who was in 8th was now almost on Sunset's rear bumper by the 24th lap. On Turn 6, he was extremely close to Sunset's car, and just as Sunset braked for the rather tight turn, he didn't anticipate how Sunset would brake much harder than normal. Despite his attempts to brake hard, he ended up rear-ending Sunset's car at a rather high speed. Both cars went off the track into the gravel, at quite high speed. While the German Motorsports BMW stopped in time, Sunset's car, which had taken a heavy hit in the collision, continued on and hit a barrier.

Sunset, despite having taken quite a hard whack during the hard impacts, was unhurt, and able to get out of her car, unhappy that she had suffered her first ever racing DNF, since the car was heavily damaged. She was quite mad at the German Motorsports driver, who was also unhurt, but Sunset saw emergency marshals rushing to his car, as the door seemed to have jammed, and he had to be cut out of the car. Medical teams were already rushing to her as well, and Sunset let them know that she was okay. However, they did insist on a checkup for safety purposes.

Once the checkup was done and she got the green light, a bike came up to take her back to her pits, where her team was waiting for her. An unhappy Sunset was taken to the pits, where Comet Flash and Soaring Surfer were waiting for her. "Look, kid. You've suffered your first DNF. I know, it's hard to take in, but hey, it happens. Every racer goes through at least two DNFs in their entire career. You'll never find a racer without at least two in their whole career, even some of the all-time champions. Plus, racing, it isn't all about winning. It's about fun, adrenaline, it's about competing. It's not always about winning. Now come on, let's go watch the rest of the race. Your teammate's still in it for us. Look, that crash wasn't your fault." said Flash.

The rest of the race was uneventful after that double crash. Hot Rocket ended up finishing the race in 3rd place, making it her first podium in this series. Solar Wind finished in 2nd, Rash Rider in 1st, Silverstreak in 4th, and High Roller in 7th. After the race, despite their second DNF of the season, they had also gotten their second podium, so that was extremely good. After the awards ceremony, all of the drivers headed back to the hotel. It would be two weeks before the next race, so they had sometime to plan a grand comeback.