Morning Splash

Art Zone stretched his arms and yawned as golden sunlight streamed through the tall windows of his fortress bedroom. His blue and black supersuit hung neatly on a chair, while his red cape draped over the back like a sleeping dragon.

He padded barefoot across the cool floor toward the bathroom, his brown hair sticking up in funny directions. The walls around him displayed his latest masterpiece—a mural of swirling blues and greens that covered three entire walls.

"Time to get ready for another day of protecting Canvas Metropolis," he mumbled to himself.

Art Zone turned on the bathroom faucet and splashed cold water on his face. As he reached for his toothbrush, something caught his eye in the mirror. Behind him, a small blob of blue paint had somehow dripped from the wall onto the floor.

"That's weird," he said, turning around. "I painted that wall three days ago. It should be completely dry by now."

The blue blob seemed to shimmer slightly in the morning light.

The Great Escape

Art Zone knelt down and poked the blue blob with his finger. Instead of feeling like wet paint, it felt warm and slightly bouncy.

"What in the world?" he muttered.

The blob suddenly wiggled and rolled away from his finger like a tiny blue jellybean. Art Zone blinked hard and rubbed his eyes.

"I must still be dreaming," he said to himself.

But when he opened his eyes, the blob had grown to the size of a tennis ball. It wobbled happily and made a soft humming sound.

Art Zone's jaw dropped. His phone buzzed with an emergency alert from Canvas Metropolis Police: "Multiple reports of moving paint blobs throughout downtown. Citizens advised to stay indoors."

"Oh no," Art Zone whispered. "This is happening all over the city."

He quickly pulled on his supersuit and cape. As he reached for his goggles, the blue blob bounced excitedly and rolled toward the window.

"Wait!" Art Zone called out, but the blob squeezed itself through a crack in the window frame and tumbled outside toward the city below.

Art Zone rushed to the window and saw dozens of colorful paint blobs bouncing down the streets like escaped bouncy balls.