Once upon a time, there were three magical, shapeshifting triplets. The first, Olga Berg, could transform into any earthbound vehicle or mammal. The second, Greta Berg, could turn into any seafaring vessel or aquatic animal. And the third, Hilda Berg, could take the form of anything that flew or floated in the sky. They all were fair-skinned brunette ladies with short haircuts, pointed noses, and puffy-sleeved blouses with short skirts. The best way to tell them apart was by the color of their outfits; Olga wore green, Greta wore blue and Hilda wore red.
They didn't get along very much, and would often argue about whose medium of transportation was the best. They even came up with disparaging nicknames for each other: "Dirt Clod", "Water Baby" and "Air Head", respectively.
One day, they were all pacing around the front yard of their shared house, engaging in yet another squabble.
"Unlike you two, I don't care about terrain!" said Hilda. "Be it land or sea, I can fly over it just the same!"
"Oh, yeah? And what happens if you run out of fuel?" asked Olga. "When I run out, I just have to stop. When you run out, you crash!"
The Bergs continued to shout at each other, when they were interrupted by the sound of popping, crackling flames just beyond their front yard. They looked to see that a ring of fire had formed upon the walkway outside their house. Before any of them could put it out, they saw none other than the Devil himself climb out of the ring as if it were a gopher hole.
"Good afternoon," he said. "I couldn't help but overhear your friendly debate."
"So? What business is it of yours?" snapped Greta. "Take a hike. We don't like trespassers."
"I'm not here to trespass; I simply want to make an offer. I suspect you're all tired of retreading this same subject, over and over again. What if I gave you the chance to settle the matter once and for all?"
The three sisters looked at each other as they mulled over the offer.
"A chance to prove that air travel is the best?" asked Hilda. "I wouldn't be opposed to that."
"But how would we be settling it?" asked Olga.
"I'll show you."
With a snap of his fingers, he teleported himself and the three sisters to the base of a peninsula, about ten miles in length.
"The three of you will have a race," he said. "The finish line is at the end of this peninsula. Whoever comes in first place will receive a treasure trove's worth of riches."
The Devil grinned. "But let's make it even more interesting. Whoever comes in last will owe me their soul."
Greta swallowed hard, shuddering at the thought. "Do we have to include that last part?" she asked.
"What's the matter, Water Baby?" sneered Olga. "Afraid you'll come in last?"
And just like that, all of Greta's hesitancy vanished without a trace. "As if, Dirt Clod! You're the one who's gonna come in last!"
"Well, it's not going to be me, I can tell you that," declared Hilda.
"Nobody asked you, Air Head!" cried Olga.
The Devil couldn't help but chuckle as the three of them launched themselves into yet another argument.
"Ladies, ladies, please! Save your energy for the race. And by the way, I have something for you to sign."
He produced a contract certifying that the three sisters agreed to the terms of the contest. In response, they reluctantly separated themselves, signed the contract and took their places at the starting line. Olga morphed into a racecar, Greta transformed into a motorboat, and Hilda took the form of a helicopter.
"On your mark... get set... GO!"
And so, they took off in a flash, leaving a cloud of dust, a splash of water and a blast of wind in their wake.
The Berg triplets, as it turned out, were quite evenly matched. Although each of them were confident in their supremacy, the truth was that there wasn't a real standout among the trio, at least in terms of traveling speed. The race was almost assuredly going to be a toss-up.
Or, at least, it would have been, if two of the sisters hadn't decided to fight dirty.
While they were racing neck-and-neck, Olga and Greta decided to make a secret pact, in which they both would cooperate to take Hilda out of the running. In doing so, they'd both be spared from having to give away their souls, and they could split the Devil's treasure two ways. Fortunately for them, Hilda was just a bit too high up to hear their conversation. As such, she wouldn't even find out about their machinations until they got to the last leg of the race.
As soon as the finish line was in sight, Olga morphed into a missile truck and launched a couple of rockets at Hilda. She just barely managed to duck under them, but in doing so, she lowered herself right into Greta's clutches. Greta morphed into a larger patrol boat, snagged Hilda with her grapple winch, and slammed her into the ground. The two of them zoomed away, cackling, while Hilda shouted profanities at them.
Hilda managed to recover and get back into the air, but couldn't catch up in time. Olga and Greta both finished the race at least ten seconds before she did.
"Well, look who finally decided to show up," taunted the Devil.
Furious, Hilda reassumed her human form and stomped up to her scheming, smirking sisters.
"You dirty sneaks!" she cried. "You knew you couldn't beat me fair and square, so you ganged up on me! Well, I demand a rematch!"
"The contract doesn't provide for a rematch, I'm afraid," said the Devil. "I'll be collecting your soul in just a few weeks... Air Head."
Olga and Greta roared with laughter, while Hilda, eyes welling with angry tears, transformed into a bird and flew away.
"Air Head, Air Head, Hilda's an Air Head!" they sang as she disappeared out of sight.