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Bob’s fire spread along his arms. Miles tapped the large bumper against his shoulder. Trey’s spouts grew larger, pulling up dark river water. Dad raised his hands, and the glass he’d raised from the ground snapped together, forming a glittery ball that spun slowly above him. They posed for a long moment, their powers on display. And then, as if the situation couldn’t get any more ridiculous, they all shouted, “Dad Squad!”
“What in the actual fuck,” Nick breathed.
“They watched,” Gibby said proudly as the Dad Squad—forsome reason—continued to pose like they had all the time in the world. “They learned. While they were training you, they saw what it took to do what you do. The power. What’s needed to control it. The pills, Nick. They took what Burke made, but instead of using it against innocent people, they’re going to finish the fight.” Her smile was feral. “We thought we were alone. We weren’t. We never have been.”
Jazz nodded. “It’s temporary. They only took one each, just to be safe. The ride over here was… interesting. Daddy accidentally ripped up one of Matilda’s seats. Bob almost lit my eyebrows on fire.”
“Sorry about that!” Bob called over, molding his fire into a ball, tossing it from one hand to the other. “Thought it’d be more like a lighter than a flamethrower. Boy, was I wrong.” He almost dropped the fireball, looking sheepish as he caught it before it fell. “Still takes some getting used to.”
“Stay here,” Miss Conduct said. “We’ll handle the rest.” She bowed dramatically, face only a foot above the ground, without bending her knees. Nick still wanted to be her when he grewup. “Miss Conduct will deal with the evil twink, with assistance from the DILF Squad.”
“Dad Squad,” Nick corrected automatically.
Miss Conduct stared at him. “I said what I said.”
“Wait,” Pyro Storm said, and they all looked at him. “Let me get this right. Four adult men and a drag queen are going to take on the teenager who’s trying to kill us?”
“Yes,” the Dad Squad and Miss Conduct said at the same time.
He shrugged. “Okay. Just wanted to make sure we’re all on the same page.” He sagged back against the tow truck.
Trey looked at the others around him and nodded. “Ready? Let’s do this thang.”
“Ooh, hold on,” Miles said, gripping the bumper lying on his shoulder. “Before we go. I’ve been working on a little something called a catchphrase.”
“How do you do, fellow kids?” Jazz muttered fondly, rolling her eyes.
“Oh my god,yes,” Nick whispered. “I’m here forall of this.”
Miles puffed out his chest. “What superpower do you get when you become a dad?”
Nick frowned. “Uh, that’s not a catchphrase. It sounds like the setup for a terrible—”
“Supervision,” Miles said. “Get it? Because wesuperviseour—”
“Dads,no,” Nick and Gibby and Seth and Jazz said.
“Dads,yes!” the dads shouted, and they turned toward where Owen had landed…
… only to find him gone.
“Where’d he go?” Miss Conduct asked, joining the Dad Squad as Jazz fussed over a cut on Nick’s head, Gibby’s arm wrapped around Pyro Storm’s waist. Cap watched over all of them, mustache twitching.
“Did he run?” Trey asked, his waterspouts swirling on either side of the bridge, misting over them, like a thin fog.
“I don’trun,” Shadow Star snarled, stepping out from behind a minivan farther down the bridge. His hands were curled into fists, shadows growing around him once more. “It’s better you’re here. Now I can wipe youall out and—”
“One chance,” Cap said, glaring at Shadow Star. “I’m telling you now, Owen, we’re giving you one chance to stand down.”
Shadow Star shrieked as he charged them, his shadows slamming into the ground, propelling him forward. He only made it two steps before Trey clapped his hands together. The waterspouts spun furiously, hitting either side of the bridge and climbing ontop of it,picking up glass and metal, a chaotic storm that Shadow Star couldn’t get through. He made a strangled noise as the strong winds lifted him up, body twisting, shadows floundering.
Miles stepped forward, lowering the bumper and tapping it against the ground. “Aaron, on my word, hit me with that thing. You hear me?”
Dad nodded, moving off to the side, the glass ball glittering above his head. Shadow Star spun upside down in the waterspout, and Miles said, “Wait for it. Wait for it.Now.”
Dad thrust his hands forward, and the glass ball shot toward Miles, who swung the bumper like a baseball bat. He grunted when glass met metal, and the ball hurtled toward Shadow Star. It struck him in the chest, glass exploding around him, surrounding him in little shards.
“Miss Conduct!” Trey shouted. “You’re up!”
