Jake Tetravin was on his third bag of nacho cheese chips, dramatically retelling his basketball game to Isabella Sherman for the fourth time.
"I mean, did you see the way I dunked over both sixth graders? I was basically flying! I should get a cape or something. Ooh—like a flaming one!"
Isabella giggled, chewing on a juice box straw. "You mean like the last time you wore a cape and it caught fire during recess?"
Jake paused, looking thoughtful. "Okay, maybe not flaming. But something cool. Like—lightning!"
"Or maybe a helmet," Isabella teased. "For when you fall on your face."
"Touché," Jake said with a grin. "You've gotten sassier."
"Spending time with you will do that."
Just then, the gym doors creaked open and in stepped Reggie Tetravin, clutching a strange metal cube with glowing runes along the edges. Behind him came Vanessa Simpletin, her eyes wide behind pink goggles and her arms full of weird tech gadgets and tools.
"You brought it?" Jake said, pointing at the cube.
Reggie nodded wordlessly and held it up. A low humming sound echoed from within the cube, like a living heartbeat.
Vanessa poked her head out from behind Reggie. "It started acting up after lunch. Buzzing, glowing—nearly exploded. So, naturally, I said bring it to the gym!"
Jake's eyes widened. "So obviously safe."
"Relax," Vanessa chirped. "Only, like, a 70% chance we all explode. Maybe 60."
Right then, the roof hatch slammed open and down from a glowing hoverboard came the one and only—
"TA-DAAA! Your favorite billionaire superhero, Remy Moneyclip, has arrived!" he announced, striking a dramatic pose mid-air before landing perfectly between them with the grace of someone who definitely practiced in the mirror.
"Were you... waiting for a dramatic entrance?" Isabella asked flatly.
"Absolutely," Remy replied without missing a beat. "It's all about the brand, darling."
Jake smirked. "Took you long enough."
Remy looked at the cube in Reggie's hands and scowled. "Ugh. What are we poking this time?"
Vanessa stepped forward. "Ancient magical artifact slash pocket dimension gateway. Probably cursed. Definitely glowing."
Remy turned to Reggie. "Why do you keep building things that break reality, cousin?"
Reggie shrugged.
Before Jake could add a witty comment, the cube screeched—a high-pitched whir of energy and magic clashing. The gym lights flickered. Every kid in the building stopped. Time seemed to slow.
The cube floated out of Reggie's hands.
The air shimmered and cracked.
A thin, circular tear opened in the air behind them, expanding outward like a ripple in a lake—a portal, its edges spinning with glowing glyphs and pulsing colors of violet, emerald, and gold.
"Okay, I don't like this," Isabella muttered, taking a step back.
"Too late!" Remy yelled.
The portal sucked in a trash can. Then a bench. Then a mop bucket.
Then—
Jake.
"WHOOAAAAAAA—THIS ISN'T WHAT I MEANT BY AIR TIME!!!"
"Jake!" Isabella screamed, reaching for him—only to be yanked in too.
One by one, the others were pulled in—Remy clutching his golden hoverboard, Vanessa flailing with her gadgets, and Reggie silently holding onto the cube as they were swallowed by the portal in a whirlwind of magic, wind, and screaming cousins.
---
Elsewhere…
They landed in a heap.
Jake groaned from under a pile of vines. "Oof. My spleen."
"Stop talking," Remy muttered, face-first in the mud. "Let me die in peace."
Vanessa sat up first, blinking. "Guys… where the heck are we?"
Around them was dense jungle, filled with towering trees, glowing mushrooms, and chittering creatures that didn't look even slightly friendly. The sky above was violet, with two suns peeking over the horizon.
Ancient temples loomed in the distance—stone ziggurats covered in moss and surrounded by strange statues of serpents and creatures with too many eyes.
Jake stood up slowly. "Okay, either I'm dreaming… or we just got sucked into a magical jungle dimension full of probably cursed ruins."
Reggie pulled out a tiny device from his belt and tapped it.
Vanessa peered over his shoulder. "Yup. Confirmed. Not Earth."
Remy looked around and then groaned. "Great. Stranded in the magical jungle of doom, with Jake in charge. We're doomed."
Jake puffed out his chest. "Hey! I'm a natural leader!"
Isabella patted his shoulder. "Sure. Just don't try to dunk on the trees."
Remy muttered, "I give us twenty minutes before something explodes."
A distant roar echoed through the jungle.
Everyone went quiet.
Jake grinned. "Correction. Fifteen minutes."