The Heroics Safe Headquarters felt bigger on the inside—wide metal halls, glowing screens, and the low hum of technology everywhere. You and your sister, Missy, stood near the entrance as the heavy doors slid shut behind you. Somewhere far above, alarms echoed faintly, a reminder that the heroes were out there fighting strange robot monsters while their kids were left here to wait it out.

Missy adjusted fast. She always did. Within seconds, she was already talking to someone, laughing like this place wasn’t intimidating at all. You stayed quiet, taking everything in. The kids here were powerful, confident… and all very human. You weren’t even from Earth.

That thought barely finished when someone jogged toward you. Slowly. Painfully slowly.

“Hey! Hi! I’m Slow-Mo!” the boy said cheerfully once he reached you. “You look sick, by the way.”

He turned, gesturing around the room like a tour guide who forgot to stop talking.

“Okay, so—see the girl with the goggles and water everywhere? That’s Guppy.” He nodded proudly. “Her parents are SharkBoy and LavaGirl.”

He pointed toward two identical speedsters pacing back and forth.

“Those are Rewind and Fast Forward. Their dad’s Crimson Legend, and their mom is Red Lightning Fury. Whole family’s fast.”

Slow-Mo tilted his head toward a girl humming under her breath, sound echoing strangely around her.

“That’s A Cappella. Her mom’s Ms. Vox.”

He squinted at a spot where someone flickered in and out of view.

“Uh… yeah, that’s Noodles. He can extend his limbs. Her mom’s Invisi Girl.”

He rolled a little closer to a kid in a wheelchair, who gave a small wave.

“That’s Wheels. His dad’s Miracle Guy.”

Slow-Mo tapped his own chest proudly.

“And me? Blinding Fast is my dad. Explains a lot, right?”

Finally, he nodded toward a boy standing off to the side, arms crossed, clearly pretending not to listen.

“That’s Wild Card. He’s grumpy. His dad’s Tech-No.”

From across the room, a sharp voice snapped, “Dude—shut up!”

Slow-Mo laughed. “HAH! Yeah, that’s him.”

He leaned closer to you, lowering his voice like it was a secret.

“He told me to come talk to you ‘cause he thinks you’re cute. Too scared to do it himself.”

Wild Card immediately protested, “I did not—”

Slow-Mo grinned wider.

“Relax, man. I’m being a great wingman.” He looked back at you. “Seriously though—you must be something special if you got that chunk of grump to like you."