Sammi Clementine hung upside down on the monkey bars of the jungle gym, her long pigtails nearly touching the ground. In her N.E.D. suit, she looked like a giant silver dangly earring.

“Seven forty-two,” a voice spat. “He’s precisely twelve minutes late. In three minutes I say we go through without him.”

Sammi stared at Herbert Slewg. Even upside down, wearing an N.E.D. suit that resembled baggy, tinfoil pajamas, somehow he still didn’t look silly. Herbert almost always looked serious.

“Relax. He’ll be here.” She began swinging back and forth. “Besides, it was your rule that we only go through the wormhole together, remember?”

Sammi launched herself from the monkey bars, did a double backflip, and landed on her feet. Herbert didn’t notice. He just continued to stare at his watch.

“You sure that thing is even right?” she asked.

Herbert snorted loudly and held up his wristwatch. “This thing happens to be the standard issue atomic timepiece designed by the physicists at the European Organization for Nuclear Research in Geneva, Switzerland, home of the highest-energy synchrotronic particle accelerator in the world, capable of colliding opposing beams at one-point-one-two microjoules per particle. I think it can accurately tell the time of day.”

“Wow, Switzerland.” Sammi smiled. “That’s where they make those pretty cuckoo clocks, isn’t it?”

Herbert sneered at her and checked the time again.

“Seven forty-three.”

“What’s your hurry, anyway? Got a date with the future?”

“Yes, as a matter of fact. The future me.”

Earlier that summer, when they first traveled to the future, Herbert had the odd pleasure of meeting his older self—a 110-year-old Herbert Slewg.

“That’s gotta be kinda weird,” Sammi said. “Hanging out with the future old man version of yourself, I mean.”

“Of course it’s not weird. I grew up to become an exceptional scientist and inventor, just as I expected.”

“I have no interest in meeting my future self. However I turn out, I want it to be a surprise. Plus, it seems kinda dishonest. Like getting the answers ahead of the test.”

“I’ve never needed the answers to any test ahead of time.” Herbert glared at her for a second. “Anyway, I’m glad you feel that way, because it’s better if you don’t. Any contact you or Alex have with your future selves could negatively affect everyone you’ve ever met—or have yet to meet.”

“So why is it safe for you?”

“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, but I’m not much of a people person. Unlike you two, I don’t run around befriending every single resident of Merwinsville I pass in the street.”

Sammi thought for a moment. “Have you ever thought maybe we should tell everyone the truth? Y’know—that we’re not really AlienSlayers?”

Herbert squinted at her. “Publicly announcing the truth would have an even more immediate negative effect on the people and G’Daliens of Merwinsville—shock, fear, chaos, not to mention intense hatred toward us. Please think before you speak.”

“It’s just that when we first tricked everyone, it was to save the world and get the people and G’Daliens to live together in peace. That was a good thing. But now they treat us like superheroes, which we’re not. It’s like we’re lying to everybody. Don’t you feel guilty knowing we don’t deserve all that fame and glory? That we’re just normal, boring kids?”

Herbert put a hand on his chin and thought for a moment.

“No.”

“Why am I not surprised.”

“Because as usual, I’m thinking rationally. I don’t care about being a celebrity, so therefore I feel no guilt. I care about science, about technology, about inventing. And I know if everyone in the future were to suddenly find out we were just ‘normal, boring kids,’ all the amazing stuff the G’Daliens have given us to watch for an alien invasion—our lab, our equipment, our incredibly advanced supercomputer—it would all go away.”

“And that makes it worth living a lie?”

“Please. For science? I’d do cartwheels down Main Street of Future Merwinsville wearing a wig, lipstick, and a flowery dress.”

Sammi tried to scrub that image from her brain. Herbert continued. “And let’s not pretend you don’t enjoy the perks of the job yourself.”

“What do you mean?”

“Chicago, that dimwitted future boy who likes you so much.”

“Hey! Don’t call Chicago dim—Wait. You think he likes me?” Sammi’s face began to turn a pinkish-red. Chicago Illinois was a kid in the future who knew the truth about them and helped them sneak in and out of the wormhole. Sammi thought he was kind of okay, but tried not to let it show. Especially to him.

“This is not my field of expertise, but I’d postulate that he likes the fame, the cheering crowds, the mayor’s car, the free smoothies, and you—in that order.”

“All right, all right.” Sammi cut him off sharply. She really didn’t want to think about how far down she was on the list of things Chicago liked, especially today, the day he was taking her out for pizza and ice cream. “I guess there’s no harm in letting Merwinsvillians believe they have their very own AlienSlayers for a little while longer. But I do feel we should at least tell Alex.”

“Ill-advised and potentially dangerous,” Herbert deduced. “He’d never be able to keep it a secret from the Merwinsvillians. Besides, it was you who said we should let him ‘live the dream.’”

“I know, but he’s actually living the dream. He’s gotta hear the truth sooner or later, and he’s so into it I’m worried it’ll crush him. I think it’s our responsibility to tell Alex.”

“Tell me what?”

Sammi and Herbert spun around. Alex was standing beside the jungle gym ladder.

Herbert shot Sammi a look. She thought quickly.

“Uh, that you’re late,” she said. “And Herbert was considering going through the wormhole without you.”

“What?” Alex stepped up to Herbert and got in his face. “You can’t do that! Everyone goes through together, or no one does! Sound familiar? It’s your rule, Ruley McRulemaker!”

Sammi climbed the ladder and stood on the tube slide platform. She watched Alex and Herbert argue, and wondered why she had just lied to her friend.

“I don’t remember electing you the boss!” Alex said.

“Well, maybe you’ll remember that you’re in my N.E.D. suit!”

“Well, maybe you’ll remember you’re on my jungle gym!”

They fought their way to the top and joined Sammi in front of the gaping mouth of the blue tube slide.

“C’mon, you guys,” she said. “Let’s just get to work.”

“She’s right.” Alex started stretching like a runner before a race. “Time to get serious. Today’s the day. I can feel it. We’re gonna get a full-blown alien invasion today! The entire town’s gonna look to us to save them, and that’s when the AlienSlayers are gonna kick some alien butt! Let’s hit it!”

He flipped the switch on his N.E.D. suit. Sammi and Herbert shared a look as they switched theirs on, too.

WUBBA-WUBBA-WUBBA-WUBBA!

A low, thudding sound rattled the tube slide as their suits began to blink and vibrate. They stared at the gaping mouth of the slide and watched as a strange, shimmery blue light grew brighter and began to bend inward. They felt themselves being pulled toward it.

WUBBA-WUBBA-WUBBA-WUBBA-WUBBA-WUBBA!!!

As the sound grew louder, the tugging got stronger and stronger. The silver-suited trio lined up like skydivers about to leap out of a plane. They took a deep breath and jumped.

The noise stopped and the jungle gym went still. The shimmery blue wormhole vanished immediately after swallowing the three AlienSlayers.