>Day 10 in Equestria. >You and Luna have spent most of the day pulling dents out of the Superbird. >The magic from the deep blue alicorn makes quick work of it. >A lot faster than your comparatively primitive tools. >Twilight and Rainbow are both wrapped up in a couple of your books nearby in the shade of an oak tree. “That looks really good Luna, thanks.” >Luna grabs a clean rag and wipes her face free of the bit of perspiration. >“’Tis not a problem Anonymous. In fact, it is quite our pleasure.” >You feel your face get a little hot. >Goddamn her ancient dialect was adorable. >Well, to you, anyway. “I told you, you can just call me ‘Anon.” I prefer it.” >It was Luna’s turn to blush a little bit. >“Apologies, we seem to have trouble remembering that name.” “It’s fine, not a big deal.” >Taking a break, you pop the hood to view the orange monster lurking beneath. >It took forever to track down a good used Hemi for the Superbird. >Sure, it would have been easier to buy a reproduction crate motor`, but what’s the fun in that? >“So you say all automobiles in your world are powered by something like that?” >Luna peers over your shoulder at the engine bay. “Yeah. Some things have changed and improved over the years, but the basic mechanicals and principles are still there.” >“Over the years?” >You must have forgotten to mention the car was over 40 years old. “Yes, this thing is ancient compared to a lot of the newer cars. This was built in 1970, and in my world, it’s 2013 now.” >A content smile slips across Luna’s face. >“We are impressed at the care and upkeep you have done to keep the Superbird looking like new.” “Actually, when I got it, it was in piss poor shape.” >You walk around to the driver’s side. “This was all consumed by rust here, four or five good dimples here, the wing was missing, the nose cone was bashed in. The list goes on from there.” >The alicorn’s eyebrows raise as you finish your list. >“So what made you want to take the time to bring it back to this condition?” “The history, the rarity of the car. Plymouth only made about 1,920 of ‘em, just so they could get it approved for racing. That’s why it has that massive rear wing and the nose cone.” >“What do those items do to aid in its ability to race with others?” >Holy shit, most people got tired of you talking about this kind of stuff back on Earth, this is kind of a nice change of pace. “They create downforce and help the car cut through the air a lot easier, so it can go faster.” >Luna looks lost. “Basically, they allow the pressure of the air at speeds to push the car down to the pavement for more grip.” >“Oh. We can see why that could be an advantage.” >You walk back to the front of the winged wonder and close the hood, then open the driver‘s door and slip in. >Luna looks at you quizzically. “You up for a little race?” >“I….. uh……we are unsure of how much competition we can be.” “With that kind of a massive wingspan, I have to imagine you can get going pretty fast.” >Luna blushes again and spreads her aforementioned wings. >You twist the key and the Hemi underneath roars to life, then settles into a ragged burble. >Rainbow turns her head away from the book she had been reading. >Twilight however, seems oblivious to all outside noises. “Just around the block Luna. I’ll even be nice and go half throttle.” >The blue alicorn smirks and lifts into the air. >“We expect you to use all throttle possible since we will get a HEAD START!!” >Luna zips ahead as you quickly jam the shifter into first and pop the clutch. >Rubber begs for mercy as it is vaporized into thick smoke. >Second gear, and the tires are still frying. >Third gear comes, and the tires are finally settling down as you hurtle through the countryside. >One you hit fourth, the speedometer rapidly climbs till it hits 140 mph. >Sure enough, Luna is pretty quick as she is but a dot in the sky ahead, her massive wings shooting her through the air. >But when it comes to the first corner up ahead, you make up a chunk of distance. >Hard on the binders, you let the car settle before turning, then downshift and mat it. >The blue alicorn has to make a wider turn as a result of those big wings, and suddenly you’re close enough to make out her head as she looks back. >She manages to put a bit of distance between the two of you as her steady flapping besoms a bit faster. >Damn, if this isn’t her going as fast as she can, what is her limit? >Quickly, you drown out the thought as another turn is ahead. >Once again, you’re hard on the brakes, but this time, the back end is a bit light. >Goddammit, you really should have spent the extra money and gotten better rear disc brakes. >You’re forced to ease up on the brake pedal to keep the steel behemoth from spinning out. >Seeing as how this turn is wide and obstacle free on the roadsides, you give her throttle and power slide to make up some time. >Meanwhile, Luna tries a different tactic, slowing up a bit in an effort to make her turn tighter. >Big mistake, as you gain more ground on her as you put the power down. >Halfway through this little impromptu race, and you’ve made up roughly half the distance she put on you at the start. >But once again, she pushes hard and gets a bit of distance on you as the both of you fly down the path. >Less than a hundred feet separate the two of you now as another turn quickly approaches. >As she begins to make her wider turn, you downshift and yank the wheel hard right. >Another power slide corner, and when Luna rejoins the path, the both of you are about even. >By this point, you can see the fatigue beginning to show on the alicorn’s face. >She’s been really pushing hard, and made it more of a race than you expected. >But this is no time for mercy, as the last corner is directly ahead, with a short four hundred foot sprint to the house. >You row through the gears till you reach third, then back on the binders and crank the wheel again. >Luna strains to make a tighter corner, and nearly clips a tree as you straighten out and mat it. >Through the gears again, and you have a decent lead as you slow down and stop at the house, Luna right behind. >You let the car idle a bit before shutting it off and climbing out, as Luna approaches, trying to catch her breath. “That was a great race Luna, you really gave me a run.” >“Yes, it has been quite a while since we have gone that fast. Though we could have done much better had we been able to take tighter turns.” >You head into the house quick and grab a couple glasses of water, and offer one to Luna. >She politely takes one with her magic and greedily gulps it down. >Meanwhile, Rainbow is rambling on about your little race, it seems she was following the two of you rather than racing. >You can’t say you had noticed, you were too focused on what was in front of you, not behind. “Luna, have you ever tried racing against others? You seem really good at it, like you have a knack for it.” >She freezes mid-gulp and chokes a bit. >“Uh, no…..you really believe we were that good?” “Sure. Heck, you made it about as close as Rainbow did the last time she raced me.” >“Hey, I wasn’t even trying my hardest that race! I was trying to be nice!” “Whatever you say, Rainbow. I remember you screaming for oxygen after we came to a stop.” >“I was exaggerating! Let’s go, you and me, right now!” >You laugh as you pop the hood on the Superbird to give the engine bay some cooler air. “I think that can wait for another day.” [Originally posted 31 July 2013]