Lab Rats- Dawn

Mission Mania

The forest was still hazy with smoke from the wildfire as the last of the rescued civilians stumbled toward safety. Some sat on the ground, exhausted and covered in soot, while others helped treat minor injuries. In the distance, firefighters worked to contain the remaining flames. A gust of wind swept through the clearing as Bree zipped back in a blue blur. "All right, that's the last few. Everybody's safe." she announced. The team visibly relaxed at the news.

"Including one very ungrateful grizzly." Bree added with a sigh. Nearby, the rescued bear let out an irritated growl, as if it understood exactly what she had said. "Oh, shut it!" Bree snapped back. The bear huffed in response while the others chuckled. As emergency vehicles arrived, Chase stepped forward and surveyed the scene with satisfaction. "The Fire Department can handle things from here." he said. "Great work, guys." Everyone exchanged smiles and congratulatory pats on the back. Almost immediately, grateful civilians surrounded us. Two women rushed over to Chase and Adam, eagerly asking for autographs. "Ah, life is so much better now we don't have to keep our missions a secret." my older brother remarked, with Leo agreeing confidently. "I know. Now people can tell us how great we are right to our faces."

Before anyone could reply, the crowd erupted into cheers. "Adam, Bree, Chase and Dawn! Adam, Bree, Chase and Dawn!" The chant echoed across the clearing and I couldn't help but smile. I raised both fists in silent celebration and joined in the excitement.

"Adam, Bree, Chase and Dawn! Adam, Bree, Chase and Dawn!" Beside me, however, Leo's smile vanished. "Are you kidding me?" he complained, staring at the crowd in disbelief. "I've been going on missions for over a month. How can these people not know my name?" Adam shrugged casually, about to give him a useless suggestion. "Maybe you should change it to something people won't forget, like, uh, Gregorio Spiridakis, or Pickles O'Malley." As we exchanged confused looks and deciding to ignoring Adam all together, he stepped forward and raised his hands for attention. "Can I have your attention, please?" The chanting gradually died down as the crowd turned toward him. Leo puffed out his chest proudly. "I'd like to point out that Adam, Bree, Chase and Dawn weren't the only heroes. I personally saved six people."

After a second of silence, the crowd adjusted their chant—but not quite in the way Leo hoped. Instead of learning his name, they simply added "and that guy" to the list. "Adam, Bree, Chase, Dawn and that guy! Adam, Bree, Chase, Dawn and that guy!" Bree noticed Leo's disappointed expression and tried to help. With an encouraging smile, she pointed at him every time the crowd reached the words "that guy." "Adam, Bree, Chase, Dawn and that guy!"

She pointed again, trying to reassure him that at least they were acknowledging him but his frown only deepened. I lowered my fists and glanced over at Adam as the chant carried on around us. "Yeah..." I commented. "...that's too much of a mouthful for a chant." Adam snorted, struggling not to laugh. Meanwhile, Leo stood stiffly with his arms crossed.

"All right, the six I saved, back in the fire."

...

We received a mission alert, and once we sent Adam to get Leo—since he wanted to get noticed more—we headed to the address. When we arrived, we walked over to a distressed woman. Chase stepped forward, mission gear ready. "We got a mission alert from this address, ma'am. What's the emergency?" Chase asked the panicked woman.

The woman spun around so quickly she nearly tripped over her own feet. Before she could answer, Leo flashed one of his trademark confident grins and spread his arms dramatically. "And don't panic, because Adam, Chase, Dawn, and Leo are here." I rolled my eyes so hard they practically hurt. The woman, thankfully ignoring Leo's attempt at a heroic entrance, pointed a trembling finger toward the tall tree. "My cat, Colonel Cuddles, ran up this tree. Can you please get him down?" For a moment, silence settled over our group as all four of us slowly looked at each other. Adam's eye twitched, leaning toward me, he lowered his voice. "I don't think it classifies as a mission if we can be replaced by a ladder. I mean, seriously, we're rescuing a cat from a tree?"