Superpower Showdown

  I dedicate this book to all the young readers

  who have loved being a part of Aurora Beam’s world!

  You have all inspired me and I couldn’t have done it

  without you, so from the bottom of my heart:

  thank you!

  Contents

  Cover

  Dedication

  Chapter 1

  Chapter 2

  Chapter 3

  Chapter 4

  Chapter 5

  Chapter 6

  Chapter 7

  Chapter 8

  Chapter 9

  Chapter 10

  Chapter 11

  Chapter 12

  Chapter 13

  Chapter 14

  Chapter 15

  Chapter 16

  Chapter 17

  Chapter 18

  Chapter 19

  Chapter 20

  Chapter 21

  Epilogue

  Acknowledgements

  About the Authors

  The Bright Sparks

  Which Bright Spark are you?

  What’s your favourite thing to do on a Saturday?

  At a school friend’s party, what are you most likely to be doing?

  What’s your favourite animal?

  What would your superhero motto be?

  Answers

  Back Ads

  Copyright

  1

  As a superhero, I have faced many challenges in my life.

  For example, when I found out I was able to shoot light beams from my hands and had to keep that secret. Or when I had to stop my science teacher, who turned out to be a bad guy in disguise, from stealing a precious stone that happened to be the source of all my powers. And then there was the time he returned to steal it from right under my nose at a top-secret global gathering of superheroes.

  Not to mention last term when I discovered my mum’s cousin, Darek Vermore, had kidnapped my brother and was in fact an evil mastermind trying to steal the stone for himself, acting on years of simmering jealousy over the powers of the Beam family’s women.

  So, yeah, you could say that I’ve found myself in a few tight spots.

  But there has NEVER been a moment when I’ve been more terrified than this one right here.

  Ever.

  The back of my neck was damp with cold sweat. I felt sick to my stomach. I tried to move away, but I felt frozen to the spot. Any minute now, the whole world would be expecting me, Lightning Girl, to go out there. I gulped.

  I can’t do this. I want to run away. What am I going to do? I can’t do it!

  “Aurora?”

  I jumped about five feet in the air at my best friend’s voice.

  “Kizzy!” I yelped, gripping my chest. “You nearly gave me a heart attack!”

  She giggled. “Sorry,” she said, fiddling with her headset. “I thought I’d come and check that you were OK. You’ve been standing here for about five minutes staring through that tiny gap in the curtain at the audience filing in, and I’m not sure I’ve seen you blink once.”

  “I was just … uh … checking that the curtains were sturdy,” I said hurriedly, pretending to examine the material hanging in front of me. “Yep, looks like everything’s in order. The stage is safe. The show can go on and all that.”

  I laughed nervously. Kizzy did not look convinced.

  “You were checking the sturdiness of the curtains,” she said slowly.

  She folded her arms and raised her eyebrows to give me the look that only Kizzy can do. It’s her you’re-not-fooling-anyone-but-especially-not-me-the-smartest-kid-in-the-school look.

  “Are you nervous?” she continued. “Are you worried about stage fright?”

  “Stage fright? Please!” I laughed in a VERY over-the-top manner. “I have come face-to-face with bad guys trying to take over the world! And you think I’m scared of appearing in a school fashion show? HA!”

  Kizzy didn’t say anything. She just carried on giving me that look. Swallowing the lump in my throat, my eyes flickered towards the small crack in the stage curtains. Every seat in the school theatre audience was filled and the noise was getting louder and louder, as the audience chatted excitedly before the show began.

  “OK, fine,” I squeaked, my voice at a higher pitch than it had ever been before. “I may be a TINY bit nervous.”

  Kizzy smiled warmly at me and linked her arm through mine to lead me away from the curtains and to the side of the stage where everyone else was getting ready.

  “Don’t worry, Lightning Girl,” Kizzy whispered. “I won’t tell anyone.”

  It was our friend Georgie’s idea to do a big school fashion show to raise money for charity. The teachers had all thought it was a brilliant idea and asked any budding designers to help her organize it. When Georgie asked me if I would join our friend Suzie and several other classmates to be in the show, I didn’t hesitate to say yes because (a) she’s one of my best friends and I wanted to support her and (b) I had a cold at the time and clearly the medicine had gone to my head and I wasn’t thinking straight.

  WHY DID I VOLUNTEER TO PUT MYSELF THROUGH THIS TORTURE?

  “You look great, Aurora.” Georgie smiled as Kizzy led me towards her. “Do you like your outfit?”

  “I really do. Thanks, Georgie,” I replied honestly as she came over to tweak my jacket sleeve and check the rest of me was in order.

  No matter how nervous I was to go out on stage, I had to admit that my outfit was the coolest thing I’d ever worn. It was a gold sequin, Lightning-Girl-branded jacket, with black jeans that had lightning bolts sewn down the sides. Georgie had designed and made it herself, just like she had my Lightning Girl trainers, sunglasses and denim jacket. There were a lot of photographers from newspapers and magazines in the audience, thanks to some of the other students tweeting that I was in the show, so Georgie was extra worried about my outfit being perfect. She knew there was a chance it would be online everywhere as soon as I walked out on to the stage.

  I still hadn’t really got used to the fame side of things. Ever since the world found out that the other women in my family and I had superpowers, the press had followed me a lot. I don’t know why they were so keen on getting photographs of me just walking my dog Kimmy or heading to school. Yesterday, there was a photo online of me yawning with the headline: LIGHTNING GIRL YAWNS! IS SHE TIRED FROM WORKING ON THE CROWN JEWEL CASE?!

  And, let me tell you, that picture confirmed I do NOT look my best when I’m yawning.

  My older brother, Alexis, said it reminded him of the picture he took during the summer holidays of one of my grandmother’s alpacas yawning.A comment that filled me with confidence.

  I was just glad I had the Bright Sparks at my side – when my classmates Kizzy, Georgie, Suzie and Fred witnessed my superpowers on a school trip, back when the whole thing was a secret, they decided to form a superhero club and call themselves the Bright Sparks, ready to help me if I ever got into trouble. Which, so far, has been quite often.

  At Christmas, we were all awarded medals by the Queen at Buckingham Palace for our bravery in stopping Darek Vermore from extracting the Beam family powers from the most precious stone in the world, the Light of the World. The stone is the source of my family’s powers of light and I discovered that, not only do I have superpowers from the stone, I’m its chosen guardian. It’s my job to protect it.

  Kind of a lot to take in, really.

  Anyway, we had this big showdown on the rooftop of Darek’s tech business headquarters in London, Vermore Enterprises. Thanks to the Bright Sparks who came to my rescue, the Light of the World is now safe and sound, and Darek is in jail. But Mr Mercury, his right-hand man, managed to escape.

  “Are you sure you don’t want me to cartwheel d
own the catwalk twice?” Suzie asked, checking her blonde ponytail in a mirror. “I’m not sure once will be enough.”

  Unlike me, there was no chance that Suzie was worried about stage fright. She’s an amazing gymnast and used to performing in front of an audience. For the show, Georgie had designed a personalized blue-and-silver sparkling leotard for her, and Suzie loved it so much that she had already decided to wear it for the national competitions this year as the reigning champion.

  “Only once down the catwalk, please, Suzie,” Georgie instructed, with a knowing smile to me and Kizzy. “Everyone else has to get down the catwalk, too, and we’ve rehearsed the perfect timing to the music. That is” – Georgie grimaced – “if Fred remembers to play the right music this time.”

  Kizzy giggled and put a finger to her headset before speaking into the microphone. Fred had volunteered to be in charge of lighting and sound for the show.

  “I hope you heard that, Fred,” she said, winking at Georgie. There was a moment’s pause as she listened to his reply from the sound and lighting box before she gave a sharp nod. “He says not to worry. He’s got it all under control.”

  She then hesitated and rolled her eyes, speaking again into her headset. “No, Fred, I’m not going to repeat that. You had better not. Suzie would kill you.”

  “What did he say?” Suzie demanded, hands on her hips.

  “He said he plans on shutting down the lights as soon as you step out on to the stage.” Kizzy laughed as Suzie’s eyes narrowed to slits. “But he’s only joking, I promise.”

  “Tell him that if he does that or gets anything wrong, I’ll let slip to Miss Nimble that it was him who stole that man’s wig in Paris on the school trip,” Suzie seethed.

  “Don’t worry, Suzie,” Georgie said firmly. “If Fred does anything to ruin my fashion show, I’ll make sure he’s in BIG trouble.”

  Kizzy nodded. “Fred says he heard that, and this show is going to go off without a hitch.” She checked her watch and then clapped her hands together excitedly. “Right, it’s time!”

  At Kizzy’s signal, there was chaos backstage as everyone got into position for the start of the show. Being the most organized person I’ve ever met, it made sense that Kizzy was stage manager, but even I had been amazed at how smoothly she’d kept everything running.

  “Good luck, everyone!” she whispered.

  The audience fell into silence as the lights over their heads went down, the spotlights came up on stage and the curtains drew back in time to the blaring music. Georgie gave Suzie a thumbs up.

  “The stage is yours!” she said, beaming at her with excitement and nerves.

  Taking a deep breath and rolling her shoulders back, Suzie strutted on to stage to a huge round of applause. Lifting her arms high above her head, she then launched forward down the catwalk in a series of cartwheels and flips. The audience gasped in amazement.

  Kizzy smiled, as we watched from the wings. “She really looks like she belongs out there,” she said proudly.

  I nodded, too nervous to say anything.

  “You’re going to be brilliant, Aurora,” Kizzy said encouragingly, noting my expression. “Here, I thought you might need these.”

  She held out my Lightning Girl sunglasses.

  “They’ll help you feel more comfortable and a little more hidden.” She grinned as I gratefully took them. “And Georgie has given permission for you to wear them. In fact, she thinks they complete the outfit.”

  Georgie was busy applauding Suzie as she cartwheeled her way back down the catwalk.

  “Thanks, Kizzy,” I said, putting them on. “What would I do without you?”

  “You ready?” she asked, as Suzie sauntered back towards us, blowing kisses at her adoring audience. “Go do your thing, Lightning Girl!”

  With a little nudge from Kizzy and a big encouraging smile from Georgie, I stumbled on to the stage and began walking down the catwalk. Another round of applause filled the hall and a hundred flash bulbs went off as the reporters immediately yelled, “It’s her! It’s Lightning Girl!” and tried to get the perfect shot.

  All the bright lights and noise made my whole body feel like jelly as the nerves kicked in harder, and I tried my best to focus on not falling over. But I got a boost of confidence when I spotted my family up on their feet, cheering me on.

  Mum and Dad were beaming with pride, whooping louder than anyone else. Alexis had even bothered to put his phone away so that he could cheer along, while Clara, my eight-year-old sister who has the brain of a Cambridge graduate, had stacked some heavy science books on her chair, so she could stand on them and be the tallest in the crowd, waving madly at me as I walked past.

  Then, disaster struck.

  I was walking as carefully as possible back down the catwalk, thrilled that my time in the spotlight was almost at an end, when suddenly we were plunged into darkness.

  Everything went black as the lights in the building shut down. The music switched off and there was a ripple of gasps and shouts of “What’s going on?” from the audience. Unable to see a thing, I froze to the spot, terrified of walking in the wrong direction and falling off the stage.

  Knowing that Fred would never really try to sabotage his friend’s show, I was wondering what it could be when someone in the audience yelled, “Apparently all the lights in the town have gone out.”

  Another freak blackout. It was happening all over the world. Lights would suddenly fade, causing absolute chaos. People had started reporting the skies growing darker, too. Something was going on. Something bad.

  “Aurora!” I suddenly heard Kizzy shout. “Use your powers! You can save the show!”

  She was right! Why hadn’t I thought of that? I quickly closed my eyes and concentrated on my powers. I felt that familiar tingle of warmth running through my veins and then my hands began to glow. Holding my hands up, I cried, “SHABEAM!!” (Technically, I don’t need to shout anything to summon my powers, but I thought it might add a bit of flair to the show.) Sparks flew from my fingertips and glittering beams came blasting out of my palms, bathing the stage in a bright light.

  The crowd cheered, and I saw Fred, above them in the technicians’ box, punch the air before pressing a button to blare out the music. The next model came out on to the stage and the show was able to continue as I pointed one hand in his direction, my light beam acting as his own personal spotlight.

  Making sure I didn’t grow tired, Mum jumped up on stage next to me and used her powers too, blasting out her light beams from her hands to help illuminate the room. The building lights finally came back on to a loud cheer from the audience and I was able to exit the stage pronto.

  “Phew!” I said, running off stage towards Kizzy. “That was lucky! I wonder why these blackouts keep happening. It’s so weird that—”

  “Um … Aurora?” Kizzy interrupted me nervously. “There are some people here to see you.”

  She gestured behind her. A man and a woman, dressed in black suits, wearing sunglasses and earpieces, were standing in the wings, being stared at by everyone waiting to go on stage.

  “Aurora Beam?” the woman said as I approached them.

  “Yes.” I gulped. “That’s me.”

  “You need to come with us,” the man said, peering at me over his sunglasses. “The Queen would like a word.”

  2

  I was led to a row of sleek black cars parked outside the school. The door of one opened and someone with bright pink hair emerged from the back seat.

  “Nanny Beam!” I cried, running to give her a big hug.

  “Hello, Aurora! How was the show? Sorry I missed it.” She held open the car door for me. “Hop in and you can tell me all about it on the way to see the Queen.”

  Nanny Beam is the coolest grandmother on the planet for several reasons. Firstly, she has superpowers, just like mine and Mum’s, so that’s a pretty good start. Secondly, she also happens to be the head of MI5. Yeah. My grandmother is a spy. And not just any spy. The HEAD
spy. Which is why, when she came to pick me up from a school fashion show, she had a load of MI5 agents in tow and why she just so happens to be old friends with the Queen. And thirdly, she’s the nicest person and she almost never tells me off, even when I do stupid things. Like the other day when she told me not to touch this weird extra button she had on her phone and I pressed it anyway.

  About eight MI5 agents came bursting through the ceiling, thinking she was under attack and had activated an emergency alarm.

  It was very intense.

  Anyway, Nanny Beam has had a tough time of it recently, what with her nephew Darek turning out to be this horrible bad guy who wasn’t using his technology business for good as we thought. He had in fact tricked Nanny Beam and infiltrated his way into MI5 so that he could get his hands on the Light of the World.

  It was hard for Nanny Beam because she really did care about Darek. Her brother, Nolan, died years ago in this awful light explosion in a warehouse while he was trying to do the exact same thing and extract powers from a precious stone: the Jewel of Truth and Nobility.

  Nanny Beam and Nolan didn’t exactly see eye to eye, considering his line of work, but she had done her best to have a good relationship with his son, to make up for what had gone down between her and Nolan before his death. She truly believed that Darek was different to his father and it must have been really sad for her to discover that he had made all the same mistakes.

  “Why does the Queen want to see me?” I asked, climbing into the car at her request and admiring the posh leather seats. “Have you found Mr Mercury and the crown?”

  The last time anyone had seen Mr Mercury was the day the Bright Sparks and I got our medals from the Queen. None of us knew that he had been in Buckingham Palace the whole time masquerading as Joe, one of the Queen’s butlers.

  If there was one thing Mr Mercury was good at, it’s disguise. He used to be known as the Blackout Burglar – he’d be incognito and then shut off all the power in buildings, stealing things during the blackout. He’d tried to do just that during my dad’s last exhibition at the Natural History Museum. He had in fact been trying to steal the Light of the World for Darek.