▩ ▩ CHAPTER 1 ▩ ▩
THE MOBIUS BRIDGE
Yesterday, in the skies above Luminous City, another Earth appeared. It arrived with a loud crack—as if space itself had been split open.
Everyone stopped what they were doing and stared up at this second Earth. It looked just like Earth, but it glowed orange. Then the ground began to rumble, and around the city five huge pillars emerged and rose into the clouds. They looked like perfectly round skyscrapers made of metal and glass. The pillars grew until they reached into space.
Within minutes, a team of Earth’s greatest superheroes climbed the pillars into space. But halfway up, they made a shocking discovery.
They felt the gravity shift, and they “fell up” the pillars toward the sky. When the heroes landed with a thud, they stood up and looked around. They were on a city floating in space between the two planets. Looking down the street, the heroes noticed something very odd. The city flipped in the middle like a thin strip of paper twisted around on itself.
“Where are we?” asked Luminary.
The muscled champion of Luminous City looked up at the pillars they had just climbed. Above her, she could see her Earth. Luminary always knew the planet was blue. But from space, it seemed to have a vibrant blue glow. In fact, she also seemed to be glowing blue.
“Welcome to the Mobius Bridge,” said a familiar voice—too familiar.
A figure stepped out from behind a building. She had big broad muscles, a cape, and a loose curl of hair poking from behind an orange mask.
The figure looked just like Luminary. Wait… no, this was a Luminary from the Orange Earth! And she glowed orange just like her own planet.
The copycat spoke again, “Now get out of our way.”
A team of orange heroes, just like the blue ones from Earth, soon appeared. They looked ready to fight. The Orange Luminary continued, “Only one Earth can survive. We’re going to destroy your pillars and, with it, your planet.”
Luminary flew through the streets of the Mobius Bridge. Running beside her was another hero: The Outstanding Ox. He was a giant ox who stood on two feet and had a devastating hoof punch. The battle with the Orange Earth heroes had gone on for over a day. Blue Earth’s team had destroyed three of the enemies’ pillars. If they took out the last two, their home would be safe.
The ground under Luminary began to twist. They were entering the underside of the Mobius Bridge. Soon, the Orange Earth floated above their heads. Just thinking about the twisting streets and changing gravity made Luminary dizzy.
“There it is!” Ox shouted.
He got down on all four limbs and charged toward an enemy pillar. Luminary summoned a boost of strength and zipped forward. She slammed into the pillar with her mighty strength, and…
CRACK!
Ox then punched with his powerful left hoof, then his right, into the towering structure. It cracked some more. The pillar began to flash in alarm.
Secret panels opened on its sides. From these panels popped little turrets, which shot laser blasts at the two heroes. Next, two large doors opened at the bottom of the pillar and small robot minions marched out.
Luminary and her team had learned the hard way that the pillars weren’t defenseless. But once they knew what to expect, it wasn’t much of a challenge.
Ox puffed up his chest and roared. This drew the attention of the turrets, which began firing at him. The blasts sizzled on his blue hide. “Ha, ha!” Ox chuckled. “Your wimpy lasers are nothing against my tough skin.”
Meanwhile, Luminary gathered energy in her hands. They began to glow. Then she directed the energy out in a focused beam to knock out the turrets. In less than a minute, the two heroes had turned the bots and turrets to scrap. Luminary turned back to the pillar and continued pounding it with her powerful fists.
“Go on ahead, Ox,” Luminary shouted. “I’ll finish this pillar.”
Ox grunted in agreement. Then he got on all fours and sprinted down the street.
Luminary got back to work smashing the pillar. But after a few seconds she heard a scream for help. It was Ox. If he needed help, that could only mean one thing.
