#kidsplode

Inside said warehouse, sleeping peacefully inside of a cloning tube, was a preteen version of Rex, or more specifically, the original Rexsplode that had died so many years ago. 

Robot explained that this wasn’t a clone version of Robot or even Rex. That although he has all of Rex’s memories, he was, for all intents and purposes, Rex’s son. 

His name? Roman. Roman Sloane. 

Robot had worked secretly on this particular side project for a while with stolen technology from the Mauler Twins, because he felt that he failed to live up to the name of Rex and his sacrifice. His last wish before getting sealed away was for his former friends to take care of this boy. 

In the end, Shrinking Rae agreed to be the one to take care of Roman even though she was still grieving the loss of her potential love interest, even after all these years. 

Roman himself is very much like Rex in which he’s a little shit though he is a little more thoughtful and knows when to shut up and take things seriously if the situation requires it. He also loves Rae like mother, though he did admit to haven’t a bit of a crush on her at one point. He blames that on Rex’s DNA. 

He and Mark’s son Marky are best friends and Roman also became a legacy hero by the name of Kidsplode because he refused to be named Romansplode like Marky suggested. 

At one point, the two best friends may even gain crushes on each other. 

Roman sighed dramatically, leaning back in his chair. “Marky, if you say ‘Romansplode’ one more time, I swear—”

“But it works!” Marky interrupted, holding up his hands like he was making a neon sign. “‘Romansplode!’ It’s got your name and it’s a tribute to your dad!”

Roman groaned, dragging his hands down his face. “Dude, no. I am not going out there sounding like a rejected cologne brand.”

Marky smirked. “New from Viltrumite Industries: Romansplode. Explosion of the Gods.”

Roman threw a crumpled-up napkin at his head.

The two sat in Marky’s room, sprawled out with notebooks, half-eaten snacks, and a whiteboard covered in increasingly ridiculous name suggestions. It had started as a simple brainstorming session, but now it was just Marky trying to push Romansplode while Roman fought for his life.

Marky flipped through his notes. “Okay, fine. What about ‘Boom Boy’?”

“I hate that,” Roman deadpanned.

“Blast Kid?”

“No.”

“Detonation Dude?”

Roman stared. “I will walk out of here.”

Marky crossed his arms. “Dude, you gotta pick something! I got ‘Kid Invincible’—or ‘Kidvincible’ for short—because it honors my dad. You should do the same!”

Roman huffed. “Yeah, but ‘Invincible’ actually sounds cool. ‘Splode’ is just—ugh. I don’t wanna be ‘Rex Jr.’”

Marky tilted his head. “You don’t have to be. Just something inspired by him.”

Roman frowned, tapping his fingers on his knee. He didn’t hate the idea of honoring Rex—he just didn’t want to feel like a knockoff.

“…What about ‘Kidsplode’?” he muttered.

Marky blinked. Then grinned. “Ohhh, now you’re getting it.”

“It’s got the ‘kid’ part like yours,” Roman continued, sitting up. “And it still plays off Rex’s name, but it’s not like… too much.”

Marky tapped his chin. “Hmm. Yeah. ‘Kidsplode.’ Sounds kinda sick, actually.”

Roman smirked. “Told you. Way better than ‘Romansplode.’”

“Agree to disagree.”