Zanny pulled up her spaceship to the landing pad.

It was modest— as an N3 model, it only had 770 Explikiwatts of power, and was about the size of a 21st century SUV — but it was a pretty lavender color. And it could fit three people, which was enough for her.

“Hey, Z,” said the groundman when she rolled down her window. “Always a pleasure. I take it you’re off to work this mornin’?”

“Yep,” Zanny said. “It’s a constant nine to five these days, isn’t it?”

The groundman chuckled. “You’re tellin’ me! We’ve got loads of ships pullin’ in, ‘specially since that new model came out. The X56. Oh look! Here comes one now.”

Zanny glanced behind her and scowled. A freshly polished, pink, 1080 Explikiwatt X56 was pulling in next to her on the pad. Probably about three times the size of her own ship.

The window of the X56 rolled down. A girl about Zanny’s age poked her head out. She had platinum blonde hair (always silky smooth) and was wearing a pair of sparkly sunglasses. “Hey, Zanicka, darling!”

“Hi, Quinn,” Zanny replied flatly.

“I’ve just got this new X56 model!” She called, patting the dash of the ship. Zanny rolled her eyes. Quinn always had to have the newest everything.

“It’s lightning fast. It probably goes double the speed of that old thing!” she laughed, gesturing to Zanny’s ship.

“Wanna bet?” Zanny asked.

Quinn lowered her sunglasses. “What?”

Zanny gave her a sly smile. “You say my ship isn’t half as fast as yours is. But it’s more trustworthy. I’ve had it for years, I would know.”

The groundman looked between them. “Ooh, a race? We haven’t had a race here in years! It’d be so exciting. You could race ‘round Planet Highnet!”

Zanny checked her wristwatch. She still had some time before work. “Alright, Quinn,” she said, revving up her ship’s engine. “Let’s do this.”

Quinn laughed. “You think you’re old N3 can beat an X56? Fine! It’s your funeral!” She waved a hand, then revved her own engine in response.

The groundman held up his neon flags. “On my count!”

Zanny and Quinn gripped their steering wheels, eyes forward.

“One.. two… THREE!”

The ships launched into the sky. Zanny made a beeline for Planet Highnet, a mere speck in the distance. It would be close, but if she was managing her time right, she could make the entire loop in under three minutes.

Meanwhile, Quinn shook her head from her own driver’s seat. There was no way Zanicka, in her clunky old ship in that preposterous color, was ever going to beat an X56. Even if Zanicka did get ahead, Quinn could easily catch up.

So she took her time. She even did a few fancy dives in the air, just for her own fun. “Woohoo!” she shouted.

But Zanny had already made it to Planet Highnet. She turned her wheel, and the vehicle tilted smoothly and safely. “That’s right, my girl,” Zanny muttered, patting her faithful ship. “Now just get us back to the landing pad.”

Quinn paused her diving and looked out. She watched as Zanicka’s N3 zoomed back towards their starting place.

“What?! She can’t have gone around already!” Quinn cried. She yanked on her wheel and sped towards Planet Highnet.

Zanicka glanced over her shoulder. She saw Quinn’s bright pink ship arriving at Highnet and winced. It would be close, but she still had a chance…

“You see em’ comin’ in?” asked another groundsperson to the groundman.

The groundman nodded. “Yep. And look… it’s Z! She’s comin’ in hot!” He whipped out his neon flags, waving them wildly. “Go, Z, go!”

He hadn’t wanted to say anything, but he secretly hoped Z would win over that other girl. He really did hate the damn X56’s.

“She’s comin’ in!” The groundman shouted. “She’s gonna win!”

Quinn growled and gripped her steering wheel harder. She was getting closer. She going to win, she HAD to win…

Zanny spotted the landing pad and extended her ship’s legs. She was nearly there…

“And the winner is… Z!” The groundsman screamed, just as Zanny’s ship pulled in a millisecond before Quinn’s.

Zanny jumped out of her ship, laughing and high-fiving the groundman. “I did it! I did it! Woohoo!”

“Whatever,” Quinn pouted as she rolled down her window. She tossed her sunglasses aside.

The groundman smiled sagely. “I think there is an important lesson to be learned here… always read your Aesop’s fables!”