Vanellope tore around the outside corner of the track in a cloud of sugary dust. The finish line was less than a quarter mile away, and if she could make it down the home stretch without incident, she knew she'd have a lock on first place. The roar of her fellow racers' karts behind her was nothing but quiet background noise as she focused on her goal. She'd done this almost a hundred times before. Nothing to it…
And then, from out of nowhere, an all-too-familiar bright magenta racecar pulled up on Vanellope's right. From the driver's seat, Taffyta Muttonfudge shot her a disgusting self-congratulatory smirk that sent a stab of unease through Vanellope's stomach. She couldn't lose, not now, not to her rival, not when she was this close…
But Taffyta had pulled directly ahead of her, sweeping back and forth across the track to box her in. No matter which way Vanellope swerved, she couldn't pull out in front. The finish line was only a hundred yards away now. Vanellope's eyes widened with shock as she noticed Taffyta had just snagged a Power-Up box. A torrent of Sprinkle Spikes spilled out of the back of her car, glistening as they tumbled and threatening to spin Vanellope's kart across the track…
Vanellope shut her eyes tight and concentrated on her destination.
VOOP.
The spikes rolled harmlessly away as Vanellope and her vehicle glitched twenty yards ahead, reappearing in front of Taffyta's kart in a burst of blue pixels. Taffyta's jaw dropped in fury as she saw Vanellope fly across the checkered finish line. A massive cheer went up from the crowd of candy denizens. The letters flashed bold and red in midair above Vanellope's car: 1st PLACE!
Taffyta pounded her dashboard in frustration as the other seven racers blew by her, skidding to a stop just over the finish line. Swizzle Malarkey, Jubileena Bing-Bing, Gloyd Orangeboar, and Adorabeezle Winterpop all leapt from their cars and hoisted Vanellope aloft on their shoulders. Vanellope punched the air in triumph, laughing with glee.
Candy confetti rained from the sky as Sour Bill, still wearing his usual glum expression, walked onto the track carrying a massive peppermint-colored trophy. Vanellope lifted it over her head and cheered along with her adoring public as more words blinked overhead: 10th CONSECUTIVE WIN! YOU HAVE BEEN AWARDED THE PEPPERMINT CUP! CONGRATULATIONS!
Seething, Taffyta glared at the enormous Jumbotron monitor displaying the player on the opposite side of the screen, a mousy-haired girl with glasses. She was pumping her fist in the air and mouthing something that looked like "All right!" She seemed quite pleased with her victory. Just like she had been the last nine times today. And in each and every one of those races, she'd selected Vanellope as her avatar.
Cheeky little Vanellope Von Schweetz, beloved president of Sugar Rush, everybody's favorite character, and the racer with the highest stats in the game. With that glitchy teleporting power of hers, she'd become an instant fan favorite as soon as she'd rejoined the ranks of playable characters. Not only did the players love her, but the other racers all thought she was awesome too.
All except one.
As the rest of the racers carried Vanellope off the track, still cheering wildly, Taffyta slumped back in the driver's seat, her hands balled into tiny bitter fists. She hadn't won a race in a month, neither as an avatar nor an NPC, ever since Vanellope had been reconnected to the game's code and become a playable character again. Sure, Taffyta had been right there alongside her fellow racers, apologizing profusely for how they'd mistreated her while they'd been electronically brainwashed by the sinister Turbo. But now, watching Vanellope rack up all those victories was starting to take its toll, gnawing away at Taffyta's conscience like a parasite.
Why should she get all the glory? she thought in spite of herself. People only love her 'cause she can do that glitchy thing. If it wasn't for that, oh brother, I'd mop the floor with her…
Wreck-It Ralph squinted as he stepped out into the bright lights of Game Central Station. It was always a bit of a chore for his eyes to adjust from the inky night sky of his own game to the illuminated bustle of the power strip hub. Litwak's Arcade had just closed for the night, and the atrium was abuzz with the chatter of hundreds of video game characters.
"So," Ralph asked, flexing his back (he was still a little sore from his sixteenth drop off the roof of Niceland Apartments that day), "what's on the agenda for you guys tonight?"
At Ralph's side stood his good buddy and 30-year adversary, Fix-It Felix Jr., a glistening medal draped around his neck. Bouncing slightly beside him was Q-bert, the tiny orange puffball who'd taken up residence in Fix-It Felix Jr. as a bonus character.
"Oh, big plans!" Felix beamed. "Me and Tamora are steppin' out over at Dance Dance Revolution. Golly, can you believe it's already our one-month anniversary? Boy oh boy, where does the time go?"
"I always knew you kids would make it," Ralph laughed.
Felix began to blush. "Aw, she's the ginchiest, isn't she?"
"%*&$ !" exclaimed Q-bert.
Just then, an armor-clad hand yanked Felix's hat down over his eyes. Felix lifted it up to see his wife, the hard-as-nails Sgt. Tamora Jean Calhoun, smiling down at him.
"Miss me, Sugarcakes?" she smirked.
Felix leapt up and kissed her. "Aw, all the time, Snoogumbunches! How was war today?"
Calhoun brushed the hair out of her eyes and gazed off at nothing in particular. "Never gets any easier, dear. After a long hard day of blasting the bejeepers out of those slobbering metal monsters, I sure as heck wouldn't say no to a little downtime. So who's ready to put some steel-toe to those arrow pads?"
Felix smiled, then spun around to his massive colleague. "Ralph, you wanna come along?"
Ralph ran one of his huge hands through his unkempt brown hair. "Oh gee, y'know, thanks and all, but I wouldn't want to be like a third wheel or anything…"
"None of that sissy talk, soldier!" Calhoun barked playfully. "Consider this an invitation!"
Ralph chuckled, then turned as he heard a familiar high-pitched voice behind him.
"Heya, Stinkbrain, look what I won today!"
There stood Vanellope, holding her Peppermint Cup and grinning with pride. She bounced on the balls of her feet, clearly having waited all day to share this news with her best friend.
"Wow!" Ralph said as he knelt down. "Awesome trophy, Vanellope! What's the occasion?"
"How about winning ten races in a row?" Vanellope squeaked, brimming with energy. "First time I've ever pulled that off in one day! I was in the zone, man! You shoulda seen it! I was all like NEEYROOM! And then it was like RRRRTT! And they all went like HHHAAAHHH! It was my best day of racing ever!"
"Way to go, kid!" Ralph laughed. "You rule that race track!"
"Heck yeah I do!" Vanellope concurred, bumping fists with Ralph. "Top shelf!"
Calhoun and Felix both admired Vanellope's trophy. "Congratulations, short-stuff!" Calhoun praised. "You deserve such delicious accolades for going above and beyond the call of duty."
Vanellope burst into a fit of giggles. "Doody…" she laughed.
"This calls for celebration, wouldn't you say?" Felix interjected. "Vanellope, we're all heading over to DDR tonight! Wanna come with?"
Vanellope's face practically lit up. "DDR? Wow, absolutely! I always thought you had to be on some sort of waiting list to get in there!"
"Hey," Ralph said as the four of them set off across the atrium, Q-bert bounding along beside them, "you're the president of Sugar Rush, I don't think you'll have any problem."
Vanellope bounced with anticipation, clutching her trophy tight. She was so ecstatic, she didn't notice three of her fellow racers eavesdropping on her from behind a nearby bench.
Taffyta stepped out from hiding, flanked on either side by her two cronies Rancis Fluggerbutter and Candlehead.
"So," Taffyta hissed to her accomplices, brandishing her strawberry lollipop between two gloved fingers, "either of you feel like going dancing?"
"Gosh, that'd be fun!" Candlehead chirped. "But I thought we were just going to hassle Vanellope."
Taffyta rolled her eyes. Candlehead had always been a few sprinkles short of a cupcake.
Rancis played with his hair absent-mindedly. "I dunno, Taffyta," he mumbled. "Vanellope's the president now. Should we really still be making fun of her?"
"Hey, she wants to have a constitutional democracy, she's gonna have to learn to deal with freedom of speech," Taffyta sneered. "And I don't know about you two Junior Mints, but I've got a few unalienable rights to exercise."
Rancis shuffled his feet uncertainly. "But what have you got against Vanellope anyway? She's a good president and a nice person and everything."
Taffyta glared at her friends. "Doesn't it burn your brownies how she wins all those races? Don't you think it's unfair that she can suddenly blink five car lengths ahead of everybody whenever she wants and you can't? Wouldn't you like to level the playing field again, and teach that glitch the meaning of fair play?"
Rancis and Candlehead exchanged contemplative looks.
"Boy," Candlehead mused, "I never really thought of it that way…"
"You've never really thought of anything, Candlehead," Taffyta snapped. "But believe me, it takes a sharp mind like mine to realize these things. And I've had enough of this sugar-frosted factory defect living all high and mighty off that freaky little glitch of hers! Now who's with me?"
Candlehead furrowed her brow in determination and stepped up to Taffyta's left side. The two of them started towards Dance Dance Revolution when they realized Rancis hadn't moved.
Taffyta turned to the spot where he stood. "Well, Fluggerbutter? How about it?"
Rancis looked as if he were contemplating something extremely difficult. He ran a hand through his neatly groomed blond hair. Taffyta swept over to him, stopping inches from his face.
"Don't think I haven't seen the way you look at her, Fluggerbutter," Taffyta said in a hushed voice. "I keep telling you, she's bad news. You want to be seen with a cheater like her? Or with a real honest racer like me?"
Rancis bit his lip, not wanting to look Taffyta in the eye.
"I'm telling you for the last time, Rancis," Taffyta hissed, her lollipop clenched between her gritted teeth. "Make up your mind before I make it up for you."
Still fixing his gaze on the floor of Game Central Station, Rancis gulped and rubbed the back of his neck nervously. Then he shut his eyes and seemed to regain his composure.
"All right, Taffyta," he said, his voice wavering. "If you say so."
"Good job, Fluggerbutter," Taffyta cooed, her voice dripping with insincere syrup, as she pinched his cheek. "Stay sweet."
And the three of them set off across the crowded atrium.