Saturday morning arrived in a blur of sunshine and cereal.
Jake and Reggie slipped out the front door, dressed casually but with their Phantom Bands hidden beneath their sleeves. Reggie's portal gun was tucked discreetly into his backpack.
But they weren't alone.
Perched on the neighbor's fence across the street—holding binoculars and chewing bubblegum—was Candace, wearing sunglasses and a hoodie labeled "Agent T."
> "You boys are so busted," she whispered with a grin.
She tailed them through town, hiding behind lampposts, mailboxes, and a very confused old man's hot dog stand. When the boys rang the gate buzzer at Isabella Sherman's estate, Candace crouched behind a hedge and whipped out her phone.
She didn't notice the girl creeping up behind her.
> "Whatcha doin'?"
Candace jumped and spun around, startled by a cheerful voice.
There stood a ten-year-old blonde girl with twin tails, beaming with green-eyed curiosity.
"Linda Sherman," she said proudly, hands on her hips. "I live here. Who're you?"
Candace narrowed her eyes. "Let's just say I'm… the Tetravin family recon unit."
Linda gasped dramatically. "Spy mission? Are you investigating Jake and Reggie too?! I knew something was up!"
Candace hesitated. "Wait, you think something's weird?"
Linda bounced in place. "Isabella's been sneaking around, and she won't let me into her lab anymore! She even locked her hover bunny! It's suspicious!"
The two locked eyes—and a partnership was born.
> "Team-up?" Candace asked.
> "Super ultra secret sisters of snooping!" Linda declared, pulling out two juice boxes and handing Candace one.
They high-fived.
---
🏰 The Secrets of House Sherman
From behind a rosebush near the back patio, Candace and Linda watched through binoculars as Jake, Reggie, Isabella, Vanessa, and Remy gathered near a marble fountain.
They were all wearing their Phantom Bands.
Reggie pulled out his portal gun.
> "Whoa," Candace breathed.
> "That's so cool!" Linda whispered. "Wait—are they opening a wormhole?"
A shimmering blue portal tore open in midair, swirling with energy.
The group exchanged a few words, and then—one by one—they stepped through.
> "Oh no you don't," Candace said, bolting up from her hiding spot.
Linda, giggling with excitement, chased after her.
> "Wait for meeeeee!"
Candace dove just as the portal began to shrink, grabbing Linda by the wrist mid-leap.
The two girls vanished into the portal—right behind the group.
---
🌌 To Be Continued…
Candace and Linda land on the other side of the portal, in a world unlike anything they've ever imagined—a swirling void of interdimensional trails, glowing with colors that don't exist in the normal spectrum.
They've followed the group into a secret far bigger than they ever expected.
And now?
There's no turning back.