Worlds Collide: A Cars Fan Fiction

Finding Friends

Doc had been right; their plan wasn't going to be completed easily. That became apparent to Nikki as they ran down the halls of the compound. It was huge, and each hallway looked the same. The only reason why they weren't lost was because she was keeping an eye on the elevator, where they were supposed to meet with the rest of the group.

"Anybody see a map?" Nikki said to Zane, McQueen, and Sally. 

"No, but I might see something better," Zane answered, running ahead of his friend. She looked ahead and saw a computer terminal. Zane stopped and posed next to it like a magician's assistant. She grinned; she'd always been good with computers.

The vehicle that had been using the computer had left it unlocked when they fled Nikki's impromptu fire drill, allowing her to access the compound's systems with ease. She wondered, briefly, if she should search the computer for any information on the machine that brought them there. She decided against it. Abbey needed them. 

"There," Zane pointed at a file on the screen. "Open that one marked 'Creature X'."

Nikki tried to click it. The computers in this world are weird, she thought. Instead of a touch screen, key pad, or even a mouse, she had to use her feet to select and click things. It reminded her of a snowboard simulation game she'd once played at an arcade. Still, she managed to click the file Zane'd found.

There wasn't much information on it (apparently these scientists didn't know much about humans), but there was enough to confirm their suspicions. 'Creature X' was Abbey. 

"She's in Sector 2006!" Nikki looked at the wall. Next to a door was the number 2011. "Look at the door numbers; find 2006!"

They found it fairly quickly; someone was shouting from inside the room. Their words were unintelligible, but Nikki knew that voice. She pushed the button for the door and practically ran in, Zane right behind her.

Sitting in a cell with a glass wall was a twelve-year-old human girl with black hair in a long French braid, dark eyes, a red-and-white baseball t-shirt, holey jeans, red sneakers with white laces, and a yellow sweatshirt tied around her waist. She'd looked furious when they barged in, but her face lit up when she recognized her friends.

"Nikki, Zane! Thank goodness you're here! One more minute in this place and I was going to go nuts!" 

"Good to see you again, Abs," Zane answered as he opened the cage door. She ran out, taking deep breaths. Nikki remembered Abbey's mild claustrophobia, and felt a twinge of guilt for taking so long. 

"So you're the famous Abbey," McQueen said as he drove into the room. Abbey shrieked, grabbed a nearby empty oil can and threw it at him. McQueen dodged it, and backed up, surprised. "...I'll give you three some privacy."

"No, don't. I'm sorry, McQueen," Nikki apologized.

"No worries," he replied as Sally followed him into the room.

"You're apologizing to the enemy?" Abbey gasped. "They brainwashed you, didn't they? Just like in Black Panther, comic thirty-nine!" She jumped on a desk and picked up a test tube, pointing it at everyone as if it were a weapon. "Touch me and you'll face the wrath of Abbey Jin-Costa!"

"Wow, what did those scientists do to her?" Sally said under her breath.

"She's fine," Zane replied, rolling his eyes. "She does this whenever her dad tries to get her to do the dishes."

"Abbey, no one's been brainwashed. This is Lightning McQueen and Sally Carrera. They helped us get here to save you." Nikki spoke to her calmly. "Now, are you okay? Did they hurt you?"

Abbey calmed down and jumped off the desk. A smug grin appeared on her face. "Nope. Once they threw me in that fish tank over there, they talked about how much they were looking forward to experimenting on me and everything. And I wasn't about to let THAT happen. So, every time they tried to come in here, I started screaming at the top of my lungs. Eventually they gave up."

Nikki and Zane cracked up. Abbey had been banned from the local dentist's office for doing the same thing during a checkup when she was six. 

"Um, I hate to interrupt," Sally said, "but I don't think we have a lot of time. We need to find Sheriff, Sarge, and your friends."

"She's right," McQueen urged. 

"Okay, come on!" Nikki led them out of the room. 

The three humans ran down the hall to the elevator, the two cars following. McQueen looked anxious, and Nikki couldn't blame him; try as they might, the humans couldn't move as fast as a car. Finally, they made it to the elevator. 

"They should be here soon," Nikki said to no one in particular. The group of five waited anxiously. Minutes ticked by as her anxiety grew. Something was wrong. 

"What's taking them so long?" Abbey said to Nikki, her worry plain on her face. 

"I'm going to go find out," Nikki said. She didn't want to; her every instinct was telling her to get into the elevator and get as far from the compound as she could. But, be they old or new, she wasn't going to leave her friends behind.

"Nikki," Zane tried to sound calm, but his expression gave away just how scared he was. "What if...what if you don't come back?"

"I'll go with her," McQueen stated. "If anything goes wrong, I can get us back here the fastest."

"Stickers..." Sally started to say. Then she relented. "Please be careful."

"Always," the race car answered.

"Sally," Nikki asked the Porsche, "if anything happens before we get back, please get Zane and Abbey out of here."

"Nikki," Zane said again. He paused, and looked like there was something he desperately wanted to say. Then he seemed to decide against it. "If you die, I'll kill you."

"I guess I'd better be careful, then." With that, she and McQueen started down the corridors, following the direction that the others had taken. 

"Wait," McQueen told her. He parked and tried to lower himself as much as he could. "Get on my canopy."

"Your what?"

"My...top, I guess? Look, I can go a lot faster than you, no offense, and we don't have a lot of time. We'll find them faster this way. Okay?"

Nikki thought that this was a very odd idea. But she had to admit that they needed to search the compound faster. Plus, she'd been doing a lot of running and walking in the last twenty-four hours. Her feet were tired.

"Okay. Hold still."

The race car complied, and she did her best to climb on top of him without accidentally kicking or hurting him. Once she was reasonably secure, McQueen started driving forward. He didn't go past fifteen miles an hour (which Nikki was very grateful for), but they were able to move faster than before. Which is how they found the room, and the machine, so quickly.