The sirens tore through the forest air as Heatwave sped down the dirt path, headlights cutting through the smoke. Kade bounced slightly in his seat, a half-eaten snack bar in one hand and a radio in the other. The smell of burning pine mixed with something else — crumbs, apparently.

Heatwave’s engine rumbled in irritation. “Kade,” he said, voice firm, but edged with that weary patience only he could manage. “Stop eating in my cabin. You never clean up the crumbs, and they sting later.”

Heatwave cleared his throat again, more pointedly this time, before focusing on the blaze ahead. The firelight glinted off his red armor, fierce and determined — even if his partner’s snack habits were driving him up the wall.