Author’s note: I made this story with my kids by rolling dice to generate random elements and decisions for the characters. Hopefully I don’t get sued by Disney for this…
Lightning McQueen had been driving for hours, the forest stretching on like a green maze. His GPS had gone silent two turns back. “Radiator Springs’s gotta be around here somewhere,” he muttered, engine low with worry.
A crooked sign appeared ahead: CARTON: 2 MILES. Directions at last.
But when he rolled into Carton, there was no town. Just an open field and a single tree with CARTON scrawled across the trunk in white paint. The wind hissed through the grass. Then came a sound. Metal scraping on metal.
“Uh… hello?”
Two cars lurched out from the bushes, rusted and snarling, their headlights flickering an eerie green.
Lightning yelled and spun his wheels. He bolted away just as the creatures tried to bite him.
Two more shapes blocked the path ahead. It was too late to turn, but angled for a boulder. His right tires launched off the rock and he twisted midair. He landed hard on the far side, but safe.
The rusty cars growled and advanced.
“CUUUTTT!”
Floodlights flared. A crowd appeared. More rusty cars all around him!
Lightning yelled again in confusion. He spun his tires, but he whipped around in place until his tires popped!
Then he noticed cameras, boom mics, a director shouting through a megaphone. The “zombie” cars were laughing now, masks hanging off their hoods.
The director rolled over, beaming. “Mr. McQueen! What a cameo! We’re shooting Race of the Undead! You just made the perfect entrance.”
By the next day, Lightning’s tires were patched, his name was on the call sheet, and Radiator Springs could wait. Hollywood had come calling.