The cars cover the sky in a riot of color and rust. I buzz around them with my jetpack as they relentlessly float by. Vans and SUVs drift sedately, hewing a steady course in spite of the wind. Econo boxes flutter about like butterflies, tossed by each random change in breeze direction. Trucks and buses plow along inches above the ground.
The vehicles all have glowing auras surrounding them. The colors vary to indicate how well each one is running. Most auras are some shade of blue, showing that the vehicle is running well. I keep a close eye on the auras, watching for problems as they drift through my sector.
Regularly, something wears out or breaks down, and a car or truck edges into the violet. As the vehicle begins to drift earthward, I jet towards the violet glow, zooming around the other cars so I reach the problem in time to give the car the help it needs to keep going. When I’ve fixed the issue, the healthy blue aura returns, and the car resumes its course.
I get busier. More cars start to fail, and I start to fall behind. Auras start to drift into the red before I can get to them. As more problems occur, and more vehicles slow and sink, it gets harder for me to get to each one in time. Cars get lower, slower, and redder and I start to panic, bumping into vehicles as I rush from one to another, which slows me more, making things worse.
A truck’s aura flares bright red, then the truck crashes into the ground. The aura goes black as the truck tumbles along, tossing parts in the air that collide with other vehicles. Each collision creates more red in the sky and I can no longer keep up. Soon vehicles are plummeting out of the sky all around. Black auras and grinding metal are everywhere. I can’t dodge the debris and an engine block hits my jetpack, knocking it out. I fall from the sky, tumbling towards the enormous black aura cast by a ruined oil tanker…
