The kitchen smelled like home.
It was a mix of sizzling bacon, overly sweet maple syrup, and the metallic tang of the old toaster that only worked if you hit it on the left side. My adopted father, Mr. Vega, was buried behind a newspaper, but he reached out an arm to squeeze my shoulder as I sat down.
"Happy sixteenth, Victoria," he said, his voice a steady anchor. "Found you in a heap of metal sixteen years ago, and look at you now. A whole young woman. Scaring away all the boys, I hope?"
"Dad, stop," I laughed, hiding my face in my hands.
Mrs. Vega leaned over and kissed the top of my head, setting a plate of blueberry pancakes in front of me. "He’s just proud, mija. We both are. You were our little miracle in the alley. No matter where you came from, you were always meant to be a Vega."
I looked down at the pancakes. They didn't know I was the daughter of a dying Earth. They didn't know my "real" parents were probably cinders in another dimension. To them, I was just a girl who was good at fixing their Wi-Fi and had a strange habit of staring at the stars.
"Alright, enough mushy stuff!" Daniella bounded into the room, already dressed in her "hero" gear. She had spent weeks sewing our costumes for the Sherwood Comic-Con. She was going as a Galactic Peacekeeper—a nod to her real-life dreams of becoming a police officer. My costume was a matching sidekick outfit, bright and patchworked.
"Eat up, Vic! We’ve got a world to save. Or at least, a convention center to conquer."
The Sherwood Convention Center was a sea of color and noise. For the first time, I felt like I fit in. In a room full of people wearing capes, masks, and glowing props, my heavy silver Watch didn't look like an alien relic. It just looked like part of the costume.
We spent the day in a blur of laughter. We took pictures with people dressed as giant robots and space wizards. For a few hours, I forgot about the "Twin Rivers" of my dreams. I forgot that I was an outsider. I was just a sister having fun with her best friend.
"Best birthday ever?" Daniella asked as we walked out of the hall that evening. The sun was setting, painting the Sherwood skyline in bruised purples and oranges.
"The best," I said, and I meant it.
We decided to walk home to save money for extra churros. We took a shortcut through the theater district, the neon lights of the marquees flickering on. We were laughing about a guy we saw dressed as a very confused banana when the atmosphere shifted.
The laughter died in my throat. The Watch on my wrist didn't just pulse; it burned. A low, vibrating hum started in the base of my skull.
"Hey, you two! Bags. Now."
A man stepped out from behind a row of industrial dumpsters. He wasn't a supervillain. He wasn't a monster from my home world. He was just a man in a dirty hoodie with a shaking hand and a cheap, rusted revolver.
"Take it," Daniella said instantly, her voice dropping into that calm, protective tone she used when she was being the "big sister." She started to reach for her purse. "Just take it. We don't want any trouble."
"The watch, too!" the man barked, his eyes darting nervously. "The silver one the kid is wearing. Give it here!"
My heart hammered against my ribs. I reached for the cuff, but the Watch wouldn't move. It felt like it had fused to my skin. "I... I can't. It's stuck."
"Don't lie to me!" the man screamed. He stepped forward, the gun waving wildly.
"She’s not lying!" Daniella stepped in front of me, her arms spread wide. "Leave her alone. Take my money and go!"
It happened in a heartbeat. A car backfired in the next street over. The gunman flinched. His finger tightened.
Crack.
The sound wasn't like the movies. It was small. Dry.
Daniella gasped, a sound of pure surprise. She stumbled back into me, her weight suddenly heavy, her hands clutching her chest. The man stared at her for a second, his face pale with horror, and then he turned and bolted into the shadows.
"Dani?" I whispered, catching her as we slumped to the cold concrete. "Dani, stand up. It’s a joke, right? You’re a Peacekeeper. You’re the hero."
But the red stain was already spreading across her handmade costume. Her eyes, usually so bright, were beginning to dull.
"Victoria..." she coughed, her hand reaching up to touch my cheek. Her fingers were cold. "The world... keeps turning. Promise me... you'll keep... living."
Then, her hand fell.
The silence that followed was the loudest thing I had ever heard. I screamed, but no sound came out. I gripped the Watch, my tears hitting the glass face, and for the first time in sixteen years, the Watch answered.
A blinding green light erupted from my wrist, reflecting in the pool of blood on the pavement. The "Twin Rivers"—the magic and the science—finally collided inside me.
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I wasn't a sidekick anymore.
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and then Add to home screen.