"…I can hear you."
Eddy froze.
Sarah blinked.
Luce slowly turned his head toward Jackie.
Then—
Both he and Eddy spoke at the exact same time.
"Why are you here?"
The words came out perfectly synchronized.
Same tone.
Same timing.
Jackie didn't even look at them.
"…School."
Eddy stared at her.
"That's not what I meant."
Sarah slowly leaned forward.
Her eyes narrowed.
"…Wait."
The boys didn't respond.
Sarah pointed between them.
"You two know her."
Luce answered instantly.
"No."
Eddy answered instantly.
"Yes."
The two boys turned toward each other.
Eddy whispered.
"…Dude."
Luce whispered back.
"…You said yes."
Sarah leaned closer.
"You know her."
Jackie finally turned her head slightly.
Her expression remained neutral.
But the corner of her mouth twitched faintly.
This was entertaining.
Eddy cleared his throat.
"…Define know."
Sarah stared at him.
"Define know?"
"Yeah."
He pointed vaguely toward Jackie.
"Like… we've… seen her."
Sarah crossed her arms.
"Where."
Eddy opened his mouth.
Nothing came out.
Luce spoke calmly.
"Library."
Eddy immediately nodded.
"Yes."
"The library."
Sarah blinked.
"You met her in the library?"
Jackie raised an eyebrow.
Eddy doubled down.
"She was reading."
Sarah looked at Jackie.
"…Were you reading?"
Jackie paused.
Then shrugged.
"Sure."
Eddy nodded vigorously.
"See?"
Sarah turned back to the boys.
"What book?"
Eddy froze.
"…Book?"
Sarah leaned closer.
"You said she was reading."
Jackie slowly leaned back in her chair.
Watching them suffer.
This was incredible.
Luce answered calmly.
"…A biology textbook."
Eddy immediately snapped his fingers.
"Yes!"
"That one!"
Sarah frowned.
"You don't even take biology together."
Eddy pointed at Luce.
"He does."
Luce blinked.
"…I do?"
Sarah slowly rubbed her temples.
"You two are the worst liars I have ever met."
Jackie finally turned toward them.
"…Painful."
Eddy whispered back.
"Thanks for the support."
Jackie shrugged.
"Not my lie."
Sarah leaned closer to Jackie now.
"So."
Jackie looked at her.
"You met these two in a library?"
Jackie thought for a moment.
Then nodded once.
"…Yes."
Sarah stared at her.
"…You're also lying."
Jackie tilted her head.
"You asked."
Sarah looked between all three of them.
"…Something is very weird about this."
Eddy raised a finger.
"Weird is a strong word."
Sarah looked directly at Luce.
"You disappeared the same day that Joltic City facility exploded."
Luce remained calm.
"You already said that."
"And now a transfer student from Joltic City just happens to sit next to you."
"Coincidence."
Sarah looked at Jackie again.
"You just transferred?"
Jackie nodded.
"Yes."
Sarah frowned.
"You don't look nervous at all."
Jackie leaned back slightly.
"…Why would I be nervous?"
"You just moved schools."
Jackie shrugged.
"…I've been in worse places."
Eddy muttered quietly.
"…Understatement of the year."
Sarah turned back toward him.
"What?"
"Nothing."
The teacher clapped her hands at the front of the room.
"Alright everyone, open your textbooks to page seventy-four."
The room quieted.
Students began flipping pages.
Sarah still looked suspicious.
Very suspicious.
She leaned toward Luce one last time.
"…I'm going to figure out what you three are hiding."
Luce didn't look up from his book.
"Good luck."
Eddy leaned closer to him and whispered quietly.
"…She's definitely going to figure it out."
Luce whispered back.
"…Yes."
Jackie spoke without looking at either of them.
"…Your cover stories need work."
Eddy sighed.
"Tell me about it."
Across the room, Sarah continued watching them.
And now she was even more suspicious than before.
Police sirens echoed through the streets of Acre City.
Red and blue lights flashed across the buildings as emergency vehicles rushed toward the wrecked intersection.
Jackie glanced down the street.
"…We should leave."
Eddy nodded.
"Yes."
But Luce didn't move.
Because Sarah was still standing there.
Staring at them.
"…You're… metahumans."
Eddy sighed.
"We prefer the term 'extremely stressed teenagers.'"
Sarah ignored him.
Her eyes moved slowly between them.
"You teleport."
She pointed at Eddy.
"You run on walls."
She pointed at Jackie.
Then she looked at Luce.
"And you controlled that guy's suit."
Silence hung in the air.
Luce spoke carefully.
"…You followed us."
Sarah nodded.
"Yes."
Jackie tilted her head.
"…Why?"
Sarah answered immediately.
"Because something about you three didn't make sense."
She gestured toward the destroyed armor in the street.
"Turns out I was right."
Eddy rubbed his face.
"This is bad."
Jackie looked toward the approaching sirens.
"…Very bad."
Sarah frowned.
"What does that mean?"
Luce met her eyes.
"You weren't supposed to see that."
Sarah's expression hardened.
"…Too late."
The sirens grew louder.
Police were only seconds away.
Eddy grabbed Luce's shoulder.
"We've got ten seconds."
Luce nodded.
Then he looked at Sarah.
"…Come with us."
Sarah blinked.
"Come with—"
POP.
Sanctuary Courtyard
The world snapped back into focus.
Sarah stumbled slightly as her feet hit the ground.
"…I hate that."
Eddy grinned.
"You get used to it."
Sarah looked up.
Then froze.
The Sanctuary stretched out around her.
Buildings arranged in a circle.
Training platforms.
Floating drones.
Kids running through the courtyard laughing.
Someone launched a small burst of energy across the training field while another kid tried to dodge it.
Sarah's breath caught.
Her heart began pounding.
This wasn't just a hideout.
This was full of them.
Metahumans.
Her mind filled instantly with everything she had grown up hearing.
They're dangerous.
They start wars.
You can't trust them.
Her hands trembled slightly.
"…Where… am I?"
Jackie walked ahead without looking back.
"…Home."
Across the courtyard, Joren noticed them first.
He stopped mid-conversation with Cal.
His eyes locked immediately onto Sarah.
"…Why is there a civilian here?"
Hailey turned.
"…Sarah?"
Danny waved excitedly.
"Oh hi!"
Sarah instinctively stepped backward.
Her shoulders tightened.
Her eyes scanned the courtyard again.
Too many powers.
Too many unknowns.
Her voice came out quieter.
"…This is a metahuman base."
Jay stepped out of the kitchen building holding two mugs.
He stopped instantly.
"…Alright."
"…Explain."
Eddy pointed at Luce.
"Technically his idea."
Luce sighed.
"She followed us."
Sarah crossed her arms tightly.
"Yes."
Jay looked at the group.
Then at Sarah.
Then back to them.
"…You brought a human here."
Jackie leaned against the railing.
"She already knows."
Jay frowned.
"That wasn't the plan."
Joren walked forward.
His expression serious.
"…She can't stay."
Sarah didn't argue.
Instead she nodded.
"…Good."
Everyone paused.
She took another step backward.
"That's… actually perfect."
Hailey frowned.
"Sarah—"
"No."
Sarah shook her head quickly.
"This is… this is too much."
Her breathing sped up slightly.
"I shouldn't be here."
She looked around again.
Kids training.
Powers flashing.
Metal bending.
Her voice wavered.
"I grew up hearing stories about places like this."
She looked back at Luce.
"They told us metahumans were unpredictable."
Dangerous.
Her voice dropped.
"…I think I should leave."
Silence spread across the courtyard.
No one blamed her.
Even Joren didn't interrupt.
Because this reaction was expected.
Normal.
But then—
Jackie spoke.
"…She stays."
Everyone turned.
Joren frowned.
"Jackie—"
"She stays."
The firmness in her voice surprised everyone.
Because Jackie never involved herself in other people's problems.
Her usual rule was simple.
Not my problem.
Jay raised an eyebrow.
"You're defending her?"
Jackie shrugged.
"Don't make it weird."
She pointed toward Sarah.
"She ran toward the explosion."
Sarah blinked.
"…I did?"
Jackie nodded.
"Most people ran away."
She gestured toward the city skyline.
"But she ran toward it."
Jay frowned.
"That doesn't mean she belongs here."
Jackie turned slightly.
"Yes it does."
Her tone sharpened.
"Because she didn't understand what she was running toward."
"But she still did it."
She pointed at Sarah again.
"That's what we do."
The courtyard fell quiet.
Hailey looked surprised.
Even Joren hesitated.
Because Jackie almost never defended people.
Especially strangers.
Sarah looked at Jackie.
"…Why are you helping me?"
Jackie answered bluntly.
"Because if you leave…"
"…you're going to keep digging."
Sarah didn't deny it.
Jackie nodded.
"Exactly."
She folded her arms.
"So either she stays here…"
"…or she eventually finds something worse."
Kayden nodded slowly.
"That's a fair point."
Joren sighed.
"…I hate that she's right."
Sarah looked around again.
Still afraid.
Still unsure.
But now she started noticing something different.
Danny was helping a younger kid balance on a training beam.
Cal was carefully lowering a floating rock with his gravity power.
No one looked dangerous.
They looked like…
kids.
Her eyes drifted toward Hailey.
And suddenly she remembered something.
The market.
A few months ago.
She had dropped her grocery bag.
Everything had spilled across the pavement.
People had walked past.
But someone had stopped to help.
A girl.
Short hair.
Glasses.
Helping pick up oranges while a little boy with a dragon plush tried stacking them back into the bag.
Sarah blinked.
"…Wait."
Hailey tilted her head.
"What?"
Sarah looked at her.
"…That was you."
Hailey looked confused.
"When?"
"The market."
Sarah slowly exhaled.
"You helped me pick up my groceries."
Danny suddenly remembered.
"Oh yeah!"
"You dropped the oranges!"
Hailey laughed.
"…Right."
Sarah looked around the Sanctuary again.
Her fear hadn't completely disappeared.
But something had shifted.
These people weren't monsters.
They were just…
people.
Her voice softened slightly.
"…Okay."
She took a breath.
"…I'm still terrified."
Eddy nodded approvingly.
"Correct reaction."
Sarah looked back at Luce.
"…But you're still the same person."
He nodded.
"Yes."
Sarah sighed.
"…Then I guess I'm staying."
Jay groaned.
"…We are absolutely doomed."
Jackie smirked faintly.
"…You'll survive."
Evening settled slowly over the Sanctuary.
Lantern lights flickered on across the courtyard while the younger kids finished their training drills. Somewhere near the kitchen building, someone dropped a metal tray and several kids burst into laughter.
Sarah stood near the courtyard railing, arms folded tightly.
A few hours ago she had been sitting in algebra class.
Now she was standing inside a hidden refuge for metahumans.
She rubbed her temples slowly.
"…This still feels fake."
"Perfect!"
Eddy suddenly appeared beside her with a dramatic spin.
"Because now you get the official Sanctuary orientation tour."
Sarah looked at him.
"…You're the tour guide?"
"Yes."
"…Why?"
"Because no one with authority stopped me."
Before she could respond, he grabbed her wrist.
"Come on."
The Hallway of Poor Decisions
The hallways of the Sanctuary were warm and lively.
Kids ran past them laughing. One boy floated slightly above the ground while another tried to pull him back down.
Someone down the hall accidentally fired a small burst of flame and immediately panicked while another kid threw a blanket over it.
Sarah watched everything carefully.
Her shoulders were still tense.
"…There are a lot of them."
Eddy nodded casually.
"Yep."
"Kayden collects them."
"…Collects?"
"Usually after someone tries to arrest them, recruit them, or experiment on them."
Sarah swallowed slightly.
"…That's… comforting."
Eddy clapped his hands loudly.
"Alright!"
"Meet the team!"
Punchy Man
At the end of the hallway, Joren walked past carrying a crate of training weights.
His posture was relaxed, but there was a quiet heaviness to him, like someone who carried responsibility without complaining.
Eddy pointed dramatically.
"That is Punchy Man."
Joren stopped walking.
Very slowly.
He turned his head.
The crate of weights creaked slightly in his grip.
"…What."
Eddy grinned proudly.
"Punchy Man."
Joren stared at him.
For a long moment.
His expression didn't change.
But his eyes slowly closed like someone who had heard this nonsense far too many times.
He sighed.
A tired sigh.
"…Eddy."
"Yes Punchy Man?"
THUD
The next moment Eddy was launched across the hallway.
He slammed into the wall and slid down like a cartoon character.
Joren calmly adjusted the crate on his shoulder and continued walking like nothing had happened.
Sarah stared.
"…Did he just—"
Eddy slowly stood up.
"…Yes."
Sarah nodded approvingly.
"…I like him."
Soundwave & The Dragon Tamer
They continued down the hallway.
Hailey sat on the staircase helping Danny with homework.
Danny lay on his stomach kicking his feet while scribbling something on a piece of paper.
Floating lazily above him was a small glowing psionic fox made of purple energy.
It curled around his shoulder like a sleepy pet.
Its tail flicked occasionally.
Sarah blinked.
"…Is that alive?"
Danny looked up proudly.
"Oh!"
He lifted his hand and the little creature hopped onto his palm.
"This is Echo!"
The fox chirped softly.
Hailey smiled at Sarah.
"He's been practicing controlling them."
Eddy pointed dramatically.
"This is Soundwave."
Hailey immediately pinched the bridge of her nose.
"…Please stop naming people."
Danny pointed to himself.
"And I'm Danny!"
Eddy leaned toward Sarah.
"Also known as Dragon Boy."
Danny grinned.
"I made a dragon once."
Sarah nodded slowly.
"…I heard."
The psionic fox hopped onto Danny's shoulder and curled around his neck like a glowing scarf.
Sarah stared.
"…Okay that's adorable."
Danny beamed.
Hailey chuckled.
"Don't encourage him."
Too late.
Danny's ego had already grown two sizes.
Gravity Kid & Laser Girl
Further down the hall, Cal stood in the middle of the corridor concentrating intensely.
A chair floated slowly in the air in front of him.
He carefully rotated it before lowering it back to the ground.
Beside him, Mira bent a beam of light through a glass prism.
The hallway wall shimmered as the light refracted into a rainbow pattern.
Eddy pointed proudly.
"Gravity Kid and Laser Girl."
Cal's shoulders immediately slumped.
"…Those are terrible."
He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly.
Mira sighed.
Her expression was calm but tired.
"You've been here five minutes and he's already embarrassing us."
Sarah looked at Mira curiously.
"…So your power is lasers?"
Mira shook her head.
"Not exactly."
She held up the prism again.
"Refraction."
Sarah blinked.
"…Like bending light?"
"Exactly."
Mira bent the beam again.
The light split and curved around the hallway, forming multiple shimmering angles across the wall.
Sarah tilted her head.
"…That seems kind of—"
She paused.
Then her eyes widened.
"…Wait."
Mira raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
Sarah suddenly leaned forward excitedly.
"You could redirect lasers."
"…Yes."
"You could bend light around objects."
"…Yes."
"You could literally make someone invisible."
Mira blinked.
"…Also yes."
Sarah's eyes lit up.
"That's not lame at all!"
She grabbed the prism.
"You could create optical illusions! Or blind sensors! Or bend sunlight to concentrate heat—"
Eddy yawned loudly.
"…Nerd detected."
Sarah ignored him.
"You could even redirect security cameras!"
Mira grinned.
"Finally someone gets it."
Eddy grabbed Sarah's backpack strap.
"Okay science club, tour continues."
He dragged her down the hallway.
Sarah protested.
"WAIT I HAVE MORE QUESTIONS—"
Ceiling Spider
They turned the corner.
Jackie was hanging upside down from the ceiling beam.
Her legs hooked around the metal frame while she casually watched the hallway below.
Sarah stopped walking.
"…She does that a lot?"
Eddy nodded.
"Comfort thing."
Jackie dropped down silently beside them.
She landed without a sound.
"You're a terrible guide."
Eddy pointed at her.
"And this is Ceiling Spider."
Jackie slowly stared at him.
Her eyes narrowed.
"…Say that again."
Eddy raised his hands defensively.
"Affectionately."
Jackie cracked her knuckles.
"…I will throw you through a window."
Sarah tried not to laugh.
"…I like her."
Jackie raised an eyebrow.
"…You're adjusting quickly."
Sarah shrugged slightly.
"…Trying to."
Jackie nodded once.
Good enough.
Tour Finale
Eddy spread his arms dramatically.
"And that concludes the official Sanctuary tour!"
Sarah blinked.
"…That was the worst tour I've ever had."
Eddy bowed.
"Thank you."
Across the courtyard, Danny's little psionic fox leaped from his shoulder and chased a floating drone while he ran after it.
Hailey laughed.
Cal carefully floated a training weight back to the rack.
Mira continued experimenting with bending light across the wall.
Sarah leaned against the railing.
For the first time since arriving—
Her shoulders weren't tense.
"…This place isn't what I expected."
Eddy smiled.
"Yeah."
"…Most people say that."
Suddenly—
Joren's voice echoed down the hallway.
"EDDY."
Eddy froze.
"…Oh no."
Joren appeared at the end of the corridor.
Eddy whispered to Sarah.
"…I forgot I called him Punchy Man."
Joren cracked his knuckles slowly.
Sarah grinned.
"…Run."
Eddy did.
Too late.
THUD
Eddy flew across the hallway again.
Sarah burst out laughing.
And for the first time since discovering their secret—
The Sanctuary actually felt a little less terrifying.