A/N: Livvy Leopard, thank you for the baby name!


Chapter Nine – Last Chance?

Dusty winced, and then laughed. "Sky! You're not supposed to use my canopy as a drum!"

Sky laughed. "Sorry! Just lovin' this music!"

Dusty nodded in agreement and turned up the volume on his radio. The midsummer air felt comfortably warm as he and Sky flew towards Utah. Dusty and Sky had a few more races scheduled before Mayday sent Sky off to Piston Peak. Even though Dusty hadn't wanted to race much after the baby was born, Sky practically begged for a few more runs. Ishani insisted on coming to the race in Utah, leaving her and Dusty's baby Destiny in the care of Ishani's sister, who had come out to help around the house. When fire season started, Dusty and even Sky couldn't help with the baby as often when a fire broke out. Ishani's sister came down to lend a hand, and even Rosa would go over and help out when she could. As soon as the doctor cleared her, Ishani declared she would race her husband at least a few times before Sky had to leave. Blade was true to his word and practically ordered Dusty to stay home instead of coming out to Piston Peak; he insisted Dusty stay with his recently born baby for at least the first year of her life.

When Dusty and Sky landed at the race course in Utah, their team waited for them. Skipper, Sparky, Dottie, and Chug still made a habit of going to all their races, no matter how much Chug loved to babysit the new baby.

"About time you got here!" Skipper chuckled as the racers approached them.

"Yeah, Ishani already beat you here." Dottie laughed.

"I told you we shouldn't have stopped at that pancake place." Sky told Dusty.

"Tell me those weren't the best pancakes you ever had." Dusty dared.

"Come on. We got another surprise for you." Sparky said.

"A surprise?" Sky repeated.

"Well, a couple surprises." Skipper corrected, leading the team to their station in the pits. When they arrived at their tent, Dusty and Sky were certainly surprised to see who chatted with Ishani in the tent next-door.

"Hey strangers." Harley greeted. Katherine waved with a laugh, and Blade and Ishani paused in their conversation to give their attention to the other racers.

"Hey guys!" Dusty and Sky said at once, laughing at their impromptu spontaneity.

"Chief, what are you doing out here?" Dusty asked after greeting his wife with a loving nuzzle. "I thought you'd be up at Piston Peak."

"I was, but I heard you would be nearby for a race." Blade said. "Thought I'd come by and see what all the commotion is about. Besides, I need a break from the trainee we have up there. He's worse than you were." Dusty rolled his eyes, but still chuckled.

"And I tagged along!" Nick said, popping up literally from nowhere.

"Shh!" Sky giggled, hoping no one outside their tent heard Nick's outburst.

"Relax. You know nobody can see or hear me except you guys." Nick scoffed.

"What about you two?" Dusty looked to Harley and Katherine. "What are you guys doing out here?"

"McQueen had a race in another town close to here." Harley explained. "Katherine had come down to visit, and when we heard you were racing here, I thought it would be awesome to come see."

"We're glad you could make it." Sky said. "Dusty, we should go check out the track and warm up."

"Absolutely!" Dusty agreed. Sky hopped up on his wing, and they made their way to the track. Ishani followed them.

"Come on, you guys." Sparky told Blade, Harley, and Katherine. "I'll show you where we usually sit during the race."

As they headed towards the grandstands, Katherine became aware of a familiar spirit invisibly floating near her. "Leland? Is that you?"

"Yes, and I have some concerns." Leland's voice whispered in her ear.

"What concerns?" Katherine murmured back.

"There's a racer out there who is making me nervous." Leland explained. "Mustang hybrid, dark blue and red. Number 6, I think. He's been very aggressive to…well, everyone…all day."

Katherine looked towards the track as the aforementioned racer landed on the runway. He certainly had "I'm better than you" air about him. "Commander?" Katherine piped up, rolling her wheelchair closer to Skipper. "Who is Racer Number 6?"

Skipper's smile dropped and he scanned the runway. He groaned anxiously. "Great. Aaron 'The Beater' Sweeter."

"The Beater?" Blade repeated.

"Sweeter?" Nick blinked a few times in confusion.

"I don't think he chose his last name." Sparky said. "But he certainly earned the nickname."

"Is he a good racer?" Katherine asked.

"He's an aggressive racer." Harley corrected. "I've heard about that guy. He is famous for causing fights before, after, and even during races. He's even knocked racers out of the air. He's also a major jerk."

"The 'knocking racers out of the air' part is what worries me the most." Skipper said. "We need to talk to Dusty and Sky."

"Here they come." Sparky said. Everyone headed down towards the entrance of the runway as Dusty and Sky came in for a landing.

"That's one good-looking track, even if we only got one look at it." Sky said, unclipping herself and hopping to Dusty's wing. The warm-up run consisted of a single lap through the outdoor track so that the racers could see the layout of the track but not get a chance to do anything to the track itself.

"I love these kinds of races. The ones where there's an obstacle course made of nature." Dusty said. "Reminds me of Augerin Canyon."

"This is going to be great." Sky said giddily. She gasped in surprise when Dusty's wing collided with another racer's, and she almost fell off.

"Hey, excuse you." Dusty snapped, seeing how the other racer seemed to bump into him on purpose.

The racer turned and smirked. "Sorry. I didn't see anything there."

"Buzz off, Aaron." Sky scoffed. "And try to not embarrass yourself in the race today."

"You really need to watch your mouth and watch your back." Aaron growled at Sky.

Dusty shifted his position so the wing Sky stood on was farther away from Aaron. "Just take a chill pill, okay? There's no need to be violent."

"All's fair in love and war, Crophopper." Aaron sneered. He glared at Sky. "Racing is a dangerous sport, especially for humans. You're such frail things."

Sky's eyes blazed with fury. "Listen you little—"

"Sky is much stronger than you give her credit for." Dusty said, not taking his eyes off Aaron. "Keep talking like that to her, and you'll have to deal with me too. So why don't you run along and prepare for the race? Wouldn't want your ego to get in the way of your racing."

Aaron looked like he would snap at Dusty and Sky again, but his eyes fell upon a certain Navy warplane by the runway entrance. "Whatever." Aaron scoffed, leaving Dusty and Sky behind as he made his way to his tent.

"I really don't like that guy." Dusty admitted. "He makes me nervous with how violent he is."

"Don't worry, Dusty." Sky assured as they headed for their own tent. "We'll just give him a wide berth. Preferably in front of him."

Skipper met them on the way to the tent. "You two sure you want to race with him around? That guy makes me anxious."

"We'll be fine." Dusty assured. "Sky's right. We just need to make sure we're out of his way, far ahead of him."


Dusty and Sky took their position for the race, and their team gathered in their spot in the grandstands. Sky glanced back to Aaron, who was several spots behind them. They were in the third position. Not a bad start for them, and it wouldn't take much to get into first. The real battle would be keeping first place. Dusty shared a look with Ishani, just one spot behind them. She nodded, indicating she was ready to go. Dusty stared back ahead, mentally prepping himself. Sky made sure her harness was securely attached to the handlebar on Dusty's back, and she pulled her goggles over her eyes.

The green flag came down, and the race was on. The crowd watched the racers go off into the distance, and then redirected their attention to the jumbotron to watch the race. Dusty and Sky managed to overtake the second-place racer halfway through the first lap. Harley and Skipper started discussing racing techniques and things Dusty and Sky could work on for future races. Everyone else cheered for their friends.

"Look at 'em go!" Nick whooped. "This is awesome!"

"Who's in the lead?" Blade asked.

"Not sure." Nick said. "You know, I'm not really paying attention to that."

"Yes, you are." Blade said. "Because I'm not backing down from our deal."

"I never actually agreed to that deal." Nick said.

"Oh yes you did, and I'm not letting you forget it." Blade countered.

Nick rolled his eyes. "When I said I agreed, I said it jokingly. It's not fair to stake a bet against whether or not Dusty and Sky win this race."

"They don't win all their races." Blade said. "So there is a slim chance they will lose, and you're afraid of that."

"So what if I am?" Nick scoffed.

"The deal was if they lose, you will tell Sky your feelings for her." Blade reminded him. "You've already delayed enough. If Sky loses this race, she'll need a pick-me-up."

"Chocolate is a good pick-me-up." Nick pointed out.

"Nick." Blade cast him a look. "If Dusty and Sky win, you'll get only a week to tell her, or else I'll do it for you. You've delayed long enough."

Nick looked down. He knew better than to call Blade's bluff. Just focus on the race. Maybe Dusty and Sky will win, and Blade will forget about the bet.


Sky kept a firm grip on the handlebar, allowing her body to move with the flow of Dusty's movements. They managed to get to the first-place position by the fifth lap. Ishani overtook them halfway through the race. With two world-class racers in the running, the entire race seemed to focus on them.

"Hey Ishani!" Dusty called as he pulled up alongside the Indian racer. "When we win, you owe us dinner!"

"How about, when I win, you owe me dinner?" Ishani challenged. "And we have Christmas in India this year."

"You're on!" Sky nodded. She yelped when something zipped past them, dangerously closed to her head. She, Dusty, and Ishani looked ahead and saw a familiar racer.

"You really ought to be wearing a helmet!" Aaron laughed mockingly as he flew ahead. "See you at the finish line!"

"Oh I don't think so!" Dusty put on more speed.

"Be careful!" Ishani called after them. She didn't like Aaron one bit, and it made her anxious when another racer got too close. To make things worse, Aaron targeted Sky with his aggression. Aaron constantly discriminated against psych-man racers, and often got into trouble when he "accidentally" hurt the psyche human racers.

Dusty and Sky came up behind Aaron and performed a perfect vertical-G to pass him. Aaron sped up and pushed the tip of his wing against Sky as though to shove her off Dusty. Sky grabbed Aaron's wing and channeled her pyrokinesis energy into her palm, burning him and forcing the plane to veer away from her.

"I hate that guy." Sky growled.

"Just keep your head down." Dusty said. "Give me an energy boost and we'll pull ahead of him."

"Roger that." Sky pushed her energy into Dusty, and they shot forward. In no time, they left Aaron in the dust.

"We rock!" Dusty whooped.

"We're on fire!" Sky cheered.

Dusty blinked. "Wait, we're not actually on fire, are we, Miss Pyromaniac?"

"No, of course not." Sky said.

"Okay. I just don't want a repeat of the Great Arizona Burn Incident. Remember?" Dusty raised an eye rim at her.

Sky rubbed the back of her head. "Right. Yeah, that was bad." She shook her head. "Focus on the race! We're almost to the finish line!"

Dusty took a turn and rounded the green flag marking the course. They could see the grandstands ahead of them, so far away they looked like a speck. But now, they were in camera range, which means the audience could see them coming up.

"Dusty and Sky are coming!" Katherine cheered.

"Go guys!" Harley called.

Sky punched the air triumphantly. "Let's finish this, Dusty! Keep up that speed!"

"No problem!" Dusty assured. He wouldn't slow down until they passed that finish line.

Nick bounced a little. "This is exciting! Go, guys, go!"

"How far ahead are they from the other racers?" Blade wondered aloud.

Skipper checked the leaderboard. "Not sure. They're ahead of Aaron, and that's what I care most about."

Leland watched the big screen across from them, and he saw a flash of dark blue in the corner of the screen. "Wait. What was that?"

"What was what?" Harley pulled out a miniature telescope from her backpack and peered through it to watch Dusty and Sky come up. Harley noticed Sky's head turn so she could look upwards, and Harley followed her gaze.

Right when Harley exclaimed, "Oh my God!" a flash of blue and red appeared on the big screen and smashed into Dusty and Sky. A shocked, collective gasp rose from the horrified audience. The camera followed Dusty and Sky as they spiraled out of control and fell towards the unforgiving earth. They disappeared behind a hill, and Skipper swore he could hear the crash from where they were. Aaron wobbled in the air and smashed into the runway, his landing gear crushed or ripped off.

"Where are they?" Katherine asked no one in particular. "Where'd they go?"

"Chief Ranger, come with me!" Harley ordered. "I'm a registered field medic and certified Psyche Healer, and I need a ride."

"Copy that." Blade followed Harley towards the runway.

"Leland! Nick! Go find Dusty and Sky!" Katherine ordered.

"Yes, ma'am!" Nick and Leland flew off as fast as they could.

Harley flashed her medic badge to the officials on the runway, and they allowed her and Blade through. Blade allowed Harley to hop up into his hoist hatch as his rotors began to spin. Nick paused beside them. "Leland and I will find them and we'll meet up."

"Good. Hurry!" Harley commanded. Nick joined Leland.

"How are we going to help them?" Blade asked. "I can't tow Dusty back."

"No, but my healing abilities are advanced." Harley said as Blade lifted off the ground. "I can, at the very least, put them in more stable condition for transport to the hospital."


Leland and Nick arrived at the hill where they saw Dusty and Sky disappear. Kicked-up dirt and ripped-apart grass left a trail for the ghosts to follow, and they found Dusty below another hill across a clear, flat area.

"Yo, Crophopper!" Nick called, nudging the damaged plane gently. "You all right?"

Dusty groaned and blinked his eyes open. "Oddly enough, I've been worse. I can't feel my left wing, though."

"Harley is on her way." Leland assured.

"Great. But where's Sky?" Dusty asked. "Is she on my back? My mirror's broken, I can't see."

Nick glanced to Dusty's back and canopy. "She's not there!"

"Then she must've gotten thrown off." Dusty grimaced again in pain. "Look, guys, I'll be okay until Harley gets here. Go find Sky! This isn't the first time she was thrown off of me; and last time, she ended up in the hospital. Make sure she's okay!"

"We're on it!" Leland nodded. He and Nick flew up higher and analyzed the ground below. "Based on how many times Crophopper bounced before skidding to a halt, I imagine Skylar wouldn't fly too far."

"Plus, she's Navy trained." Nick reminded him. "She would tuck-and-roll or something, and she might have traveled farther because of it."

Leland muttered to himself, calculating how far a human Sky's size would travel after the last time Dusty bounced off the ground. "This way!" He shot off like a rocket, and Nick followed close behind. They went to the small hill behind Dusty. At the bottom rested a familiar psyche human. Nick and Leland flew down to Sky's side. Her leg was twisted at an odd angle, and she was covered in dirt. She lay still, but she breathed, so she was just unconscious.

"Nice job, Turbo." Nick said.

Leland nodded in thanks. "You stay here with her. I'm going to update Harley."

"On it." Nick nodded. Leland disappeared. Nick nudged Sky, but she remained motionless. She didn't look nearly as banged up as she could have been. Nick could only guess that she tumbled the way a martial artist would, and it broke her fall. As far as he could tell, she was okay. "Just hold on, Sky." Nick murmured, glancing above him. "You'll be all right. Just hang on."

"Hey Nick."

Nick shouted in surprise and shot straight up into the air. He looked all around and did a perfect double-take. "Sky? How are you there when you're also down there?"

Sky glanced down to her body and stared at the translucency of her hand. "I think this is me as a ghost."

"A ghost?" Nick blinked in surprise. "But that would mean…." His eyes widened. "Dios Mio, I think you're dying."

"I think I took a harder blow than I normally do." Sky admitted. "Aaron's wing clipped my side. I could have broken something, for all I know."

"Just because you're broken doesn't mean you won't live." Nick protested. "Try and reenter your body. Harley's on her way."

Sky nodded and knelt down next to her body. "Um, how do I do this?"

"Just go in." Nick urged. "Dive headfirst, do a cannonball, do something!"

"Stop yelling at me, Lopez!" Sky snapped. She stood up and jumped forward, aiming her feet for her body's stomach. But her feet went through her body and stopped when they hit the grass below it. Sky tried again, but she kept going through her body instead of into it. "What is going on?"

"Keep trying." Nick practically ordered.

"I am trying!" Sky even tried to lay down on top of her body, and she went through it. "I'm not connecting. Does this mean I'm really dying?"

"Technically, you're already dying." Nick corrected. "I think your body is too weak to hold onto you."

"What?!" Sky's voice went up a few octaves. "You mean I'm going to die?"

"No! No way, not while I'm here." Nick assured.

Sky's eyes darted back and forth between her body and Nick. "I don't want to die, Nick. Not today. I'm not ready!"

"I said I wasn't going to let you die, and I meant it!" Nick snapped. "Hang on!"

"To what?" Sky yelped when Nick suddenly hooked one of his landing skids under her arm and lifted her off the ground. Right when she managed to tighten her grip, Nick pulled her into her body and the two of them disappeared.

When Sky opened her eyes, she saw what looked like her room back in Skipper and Sparky's hanger. Except there wasn't a speck of color: just blacks, whites, and greys. No light came from the window. Sky and Nick glowed in a soft, blue radiance.

"So, what's this?" Sky asked.

"We're inside you, now." Nick said. "And you're going to stay in here."

"You pulled me into my own body?" Sky said incredulously. "Wow. Nice job." She glanced to her hands, and she saw the glow around her body flickering. "I think it's working!"

"Yeah, I think you're clinging to life by a thread, but it should be long enough for Harley to get here." Nick said.

Sky sighed in relief. "Good. You better get out of here, then. Wouldn't want to wake up possessed by a ghost."

"Don't worry, I'll leave in a minute." Nick said. "I just want to make sure you're anchored down before I leave."

"Thanks, Nick." Sky said. "I owe you big time."

Nick rolled his eyes. "Nah. What are friends for, right?"

Sky laughed. "Especially ghost friends."

Nick stared at her for a moment. She almost died. Heck, she's still barely hanging onto life until Harley gets here. I need to tell her now, before I lose the moment. Nick cleared his throat. "Hey, Sky?"


Leland led the way to Dusty, but the former crop duster practically ordered Blade and Harley to find Sky since she was in worse condition. Harley ordered Leland to stay with Dusty while Blade flew her over the next hill and to Sky.

"There she is!" Blade called, making a landing a safe distance away from Sky's motionless body. Once Harley hopped out, they rushed over to Sky. Blade grimaced. "She doesn't look good."

Harley quickly checked Sky's vitals, using her powers to evaluate her injuries. "Breathing low, pulse weak. She has several broken bones and internal bleeding. Hang on." She folded her hands in front of her chest and shut her eyes in concentration. When she opened her eyes, her irises were snow-white and her hands became enveloped in a teal glow. She ever-so-carefully placed her hands over Sky's chest and abdomen, letting her healing powers do their work.

Whatever Nick was going to say to Sky, she didn't get to hear it. They jumped when the area around them rumbled and shook. Cracks appeared in the ground and on the walls.

"What's happening?" Sky asked.

"I think you're waking up!" Nick gasped.

"Well then get the heck out of me!" Sky urged. "What if you get stuck in here?"

"I won't." Nick assured. "I'm going, see? I'm going!"

Before he could, he and Sky both felt blasts of pain, and Nick blacked out.


Harley continued her healing, bringing Sky into a more stable condition. "Come on, Sky. Come on."

Blade stared anxiously, hopefully, and wished Sky would give some indication she was alive. "She has really got to stop doing this to me."

"Says the firefighter." Harley snorted. "Bet you do this to her too."

Blade opened his mouth to argue, then shut it again. He perked up when Sky coughed, and her eyes fluttered open. "There she is."

"Hey Sky." Harley held her hand over Sky's face. "How many fingers do you see?"

Sky stared at the hand. "Three: middle, index, and a weirdly shaped thumb."

When Harley realized Sky was messing with her, she rolled her eyes. "Oh you're fine."

"How's Dusty?" Sky asked.

"Fine. Told us to go looking for you." Blade said. "And, thankfully, it looks like you'll both live."

"Leland is staying with Dusty. Both of you are stable, and help is on the way." Harley said. "We just have to sit tight."

Sky sighed in relief. Then, her eyes widened. If she could, she would've shot straight up. "Wait, where's Nick?"

"He's not with you?" Blade looked around and realized Nick was nowhere to be found. "Nick? Nick!"

"He was inside me." Sky murmured.

"What?" Harley asked with a confused look on her face.

"I was dying." Sky explained. "I couldn't get back into my body. He pulled me in and kept me there until you got here. Where is he?"

Harley and Blade looked around and called for Nick, but he wouldn't show. Neither one of them could answer Sky's question.

Sky stared at the clouds. Nick. Where'd you go?