Lexi Magill and the Teleportation Tournament

CHAPTER ONE

Lexi snatched the teleportation medallion off the counter and flipped it into the air. The half-dollar-sized gray medallion landed in her palm, and she clenched her fingers over it. A Tel-Med was the final thing she needed to enter the Teleportation Tournament, and now she had one. Granted, she had to blow her birthday dough and an entire year’s allowance to rent it, but it’s not like she had a choice. There was no way that she, Alexis Theresa Magill, teleport science whiz and Wisconsin’s top junior scientist, was missing the chance to race around the world in the student science competition of the year.

“You’re all set,” the rental store employee said as he handed a smiling Lexi the receipt. “The store’s closed Monday for the Memorial Day holiday, so it needs to be back on Tuesday to avoid a late fee.”

Lexi nodded. “Got it. Thanks.”

Tel-Med tucked safely in her pocket, Lexi strode to the exit. She checked her watch. 6:10 a.m. Right on schedule. In a few minutes, she’d be at the high school, where she’d grab a spot in the tournament check-in line and wait for her teammates. Sure, she was a tad early, but it was worth it. Fifty teams of three kids each meant 150 entrants—the check-in line was going to get majorly long in a hurry.

Besides, early meant she’d get a chance to talk to Haley. Although they’d chatted on the phone and texted a few times, Lexi hadn’t been able to spend any real time with her best friend since moving across town. There was so much Lexi wanted to catch up on—like finding out who Haley picked as her new lab partner after Lexi switched schools. Or if Haley finally figured out how to program Gary, the robotic grasshopper, to jump over a box of paper clips. Giggling to herself as she turned the corner, Lexi guessed a big “No” on that one. Lexi had created the original code, and Haley wasn’t great at—

“Hey, Lexi!”

“Look! It’s Lexi!”

Lexi glanced ahead. Down the block, kids from her former science academy waved from the parking lot. “Hey, everyone!” she yelled, picking up the pace.

Three boys wearing blue jeans and blue T-shirts with “Physics Phenoms” emblazoned across the front ran toward her. “You’re here!” the middle boy said, eyes wide.

Lexi threw back her shoulders and grinned. “Hi, Tomoka! Of course! You didn’t really think I’d miss this, did you?”

More kids rushed to greet her, and soon Lexi felt like her old self, chatting away about advancements in teleport science (underwater telepods for divers exploring the ocean floor!) and the newest tech gadgets (bionic gloves!). But as the conversations continued, a lump formed in her throat. She missed this. When her dad lost his job and moved her family to a smaller house across town, the pricey science academy was one of the first things to go under her parents’ “major downsizing initiative.”

Now Lexi was stuck at West Elm Middle School, where fitting in was like sound waves traveling in a vacuum: impossible. Not only wasn’t there anyone who wanted to discuss the finer points of quantum physics, but the school didn’t even have a science club. Plus, moving midyear made it impossible to find friends. So far, her semester had been filled with lonely lunch periods and loads of free time after school.

Lexi tightened her hands into fists, willing herself to stay focused. Follow the plan. She’d win the tournament and use the prize money to re-enroll in the academy. In the fall, she’d have her old life back.

A speck of a silver T-shirt and a bobbing blonde ponytail flashed in the distance. Instantly brightening, Lexi dashed toward the sparkly target.

“Haley!” Lexi shouted.

“Lexi!” Haley cried, wrapping her arms around Lexi’s shoulders.

Lexi returned her friend’s hug. “I’ve totally missed you.”

“I know,” Haley said. “Me too.” Then, in a whisper, “I can’t believe we’re not racing together. It stinks that teammates have to be from the same school.”

Lexi puffed out a breath. “Tell me about it. You would not believe what I had to go through to find teammates.”

Haley peered past Lexi. “Oh no. Who did you end up with?”

“Just two kids from my history class.” Lexi sighed. “They’re nice and all, but they’re not into science in the least. No science explorer camps, no junior science club… not even a science fair.”

Haley winced. “Ouch. That doesn’t sound good, though I suppose…”

“What?”

“Well, if they don’t know anything about science, you won’t have anyone to fight with over the answers.”

Lexi laughed. Haley always had a way of twisting things around to find an advantage. “Yeah, well, maybe—”

“Sure,” Haley said. “A bunch of us have been doing practice tournaments on the weekends, and OMG, Lexi. Andre argues about everything—even what telepod line is shorter! If I’m going to have to battle him on every puzzle, it’ll eat up tons of time.” She clutched Lexi’s forearm. “I so wish you were still on my team. We’d be unstoppable!”

Haley continued her rant about Andre, but Lexi’s mind drifted to the practice tournaments she had missed. She wished Haley had invited her. Even though they weren’t teammates, it would have been fun to hang out like they used to. Lexi opened her mouth, but then closed it, remembering the stupid rental Tel-Med in her pocket. A year ago, she had her own, shiny gold Tel-Med and could go teleporting whenever she wanted. The new Magill family budget put an end to that.

A spinning Haley jolted Lexi out of her thoughts.

“Aren’t our shirts awesome?” The shimmery letters shouting “Haley’s Comets” blurred as Haley spun past Lexi.

“Oh wow. Yeah,” Lexi answered half-heartedly. “Good idea with the glitter.” She glanced away, trying to shake off the uneasy feeling that had taken root in her stomach from missing out. It wasn’t Haley’s fault she didn’t have a Tel-Med anymore. In fact, that was probably why Haley hadn’t bothered asking her—she knew Lexi wouldn’t have been able to go.

Haley whirled to a stop and spread her arms out wide as she wobbled in place.

Laughing, Lexi gripped Haley’s elbow to help her friend regain her balance. “Hey,” she said. “So, tell me about Gary. Did you guys get him to jump?”

Haley steadied and tilted her head to the side, looking confused.

“You know, how we were trying to program him to hop over the box?” Lexi straightened her glasses. “And what’s the new class project—”

“Attention, competitors!” an official announced over the speakers. “It’s time to check in. Everyone, get in line with your teams!”

Haley jumped free of Lexi’s grasp. “This is it! I have to find Emma and Andre. See ya!”

“Yeah, okay,” Lexi mumbled, watching her friend dart through the crowd. “Hey!” she called. “We can catch up at the rest area! Save me a seat!” Haley didn’t turn, and Lexi frowned. Oh well. She should find her teammates, too.

Lexi scanned the parking lot. Not surprisingly, nearly every team was color-coordinated, matching their shirts, pants, windbreakers, and sometimes even their gym shoes. More than half the teams had also sprung for identical backpacks. But as the teams assembled and check-in started, Lexi’s team consisted of a single member: her. She scowled. Two late teammates. Fantastic start.

The line inched forward, and soon Lexi stood three back from the counter. As she turned to scour the area again, a tittering pulsed through the crowd. Lexi looked across the parking lot, where kids who had checked in were waiting. Teams gathered together, hands partially covering their mouths, whispering. Every few seconds, an arm shot out of a huddle with a finger pointed toward the circular drive reserved for buses. Wondering what the commotion could be, Lexi followed one of the fingers to its target.

She sighed with understanding. Her teammates were crossing the driveway, and if there were awards for oddest-looking racers, Ron and Mal would have won in a landslide.

For starters, Ron had to be carrying the largest backpack in the world. Bulging at every side, it seriously looked like his backpack had left a buffet where it had eaten all the other backpacks. Not only did it extend above his head to all the way down to his waist, but it was as wide as his body—his five-foot, five-inch, 160-pound body. And it didn’t end there, as Ron was dressed as someone headed to tryouts: baggy green basketball shorts, loose-fitted green Green Bay Packers shirt, and gym shoes.

Mal, on the other hand, wore a pink T-shirt with, “Eat, Draw, Sleep, Repeat” scrawled across the front, a brown miniskirt, fuchsia leggings, and lime green ballet flats. Her long, glossy black hair was set in an elaborate braid, and a camera hung around her neck. A stylish purse backpack dangled over an arm, and to top it off, a gold scarf circled her wrist. She could have been going to a tea party or a fashion show, or, really, anywhere other than a teleportation tournament.

Lexi waved. “Hey, Ron. Hey, Mal.”

“Lexi!” Ron boomed as he extended his arm over his head. “Never fear, the Filipino Flyer is here!”

“Sorry we’re late,” Mal said as she joined the line.

Thunk.

Ron dropped his pack onto the pavement. “Nah, it’s perfect timing. Looks like we’re next, huh?”

“Um, yeah,” Lexi mumbled without looking. She pointed to the Milwaukee Brewers logo on her T-shirt. She’d used her favorite baseball team as inspiration for her team’s wardrobe. “So, uh, I thought we were going with Brewers gear—or at least their colors of blue and gold? And pockets are kind of important—quick access to our Tel-Meds, IDs, and stuff.”

Mal pinched her T-shirt. “Sorry. I really wanted to wear my drawing shirt.” She raised her arm. “But I added a gold scarf, and I do have a pocket.” Mal turned and directed Lexi to the back of her skirt, where the smallest heart-shaped pocket in the world resided.

“Oh,” Lexi said.

“Yeah, and I looked for something Brewers, but no dice,” Ron said. He stuck out his chest and smoothed the front of his shirt. “So, I went with Packers.” He surveyed the crowd. “This is unbelievable. Almost everyone has team uniforms.”

“I know,” Lexi grumbled. “That’s why I said—”

“Next!” shouted a tournament official at the counter.

Lexi nudged her teammates to the recently vacated station. “Names?” a voice from behind a box of file folders asked.

“Alexis Magill, Ronald Quinto, and Malena Moreno,” Lexi answered.

The man raised his head, revealing a red handlebar mustache and big blue eyes. “Lexi! We’ve missed you!”

“Dr. Harrison! I miss you, too!” Lexi said. “Your physics classes are the best.”

Dr. Harrison picked out their folders. “IDs and Tel-Meds, please.” Lexi retrieved her Tel-Med, noticing the bright blue “RENTAL” stamp for the first time. Deftly flipping it to the other side, she handed it over with her school ID. Dr. Harrison opened the lid to a small black box and inserted the Tel-Med into a compartment. He closed the lid and pressed a button. Click. A second later, after checking the lights on the side of the machine, Dr. Harrison opened the lid and returned the Tel-Med.

“What’s that for?” Lexi asked.

“We’ve installed a tracking and disabling chip,” Dr. Harrison replied. “You’ll hear more about it in a few minutes.”

“Oh.” Lexi studied the medallion. She didn’t see any marks. Whew. There was no way she could afford a charge for damaging it.

Dr. Harrison repeated the process with Ron’s and Mal’s Tel-Meds. “Okay. Team name?”

“Team RAM,” Lexi said, hoping Dr. Harrison wouldn’t comment on how dorky it sounded. Most teams picked science-themed names, but Ron and Mal had nixed all of her suggestions.

“R-A-M?”

“Yeah, it’s our initials,” Mal offered. “Ronald, Alexis, Malena.”

“Gotcha. Team RAM.” Dr. Harrison handed them three navy blue–and–gold ribbon necklaces. “Go ahead and tie your badges through the ribbons.”

“Brewers colors. Cool,” Lexi said as she secured the badge with her name and photo to a necklace and hung it around her neck.

“And here’s your first clue,” Dr. Harrison said, passing a notebook-sized manila envelope to Lexi. “Don’t open it until you’re told to do so. It’s an automatic disqualification.”

“Okay,” Lexi said, grabbing the envelope.

“All right, you three can wait in the main parking lot. We’ll start the formal rules explanation in a little bit.” He winked at Ron and Mal. “You guys really lucked out with Lexi. She knows her stuff. Good luck.”

“Thanks,” Lexi said, and she led Mal and Ron to a grassy area bordering the parking lot.

Mal aimed her camera at the check-in booth and snapped a few photos.

“What are you doing?” Lexi asked, unshouldering her pack.

“Grabbing a couple shots. I probably won’t use them, but you never know.”

Lexi squinted toward Mal, confused. “What do you—”

“Man, is this heavy,” Ron interrupted. He hoisted his pack onto a picnic table and opened a few zippers. Hoodies, caps, and T-shirts spilled out.

“Holy cow!” Lexi said. “What’s all that?”

Ron rocked back on his heels. “Swag, man. You know, merchandise. Merch. Haven’t you heard? Europe’s in love with the NFL. I’ve got jerseys, hoodies, hats—tons of Green Bay Packers stuff.” He rubbed his hands together and pointed his thumbs to his chest. “This guy’s gonna make a nice little profit this weekend.”

Lexi stared at him, mouth agape.

“What?” Ron said. “I told you I’d do your science tournament thing if I got a chance to make some money. Football camp’s this summer. My parents will pay for a week, but if I get more dough, I bet I can get them to let me go for two weeks. High school and college coaches love that stuff.”

“I… uh, yeah,” Lexi mumbled. “I remember you saying the money would come in handy, but I thought you meant prize money, like when we win. It’s a race, remember? There’s not going to be time to sell stuff.”

Ron brushed her off. “No worries, Magill. My swag’s gonna go quick. I’ll need maybe five, ten minutes at each stop.”

“But—”

Mal shrugged. “That works for me. That’s when I’ll take photos.”

Lexi’s breath caught in her throat. “Photos?” she croaked.

“For the state photo contest.” Mal waved her arm to the side as if she were a model displaying a prize on a game show. “‘Around the World’ by Malena Moreno.” She grinned. “Everyone’s gonna have photos from around Wisconsin, maybe somewhere from a summer vacation, but all of Europe? No way. I’ll definitely be the one to beat, not to mention I’ll get automatic extra credit for my art class.”

Lexi squeezed the back of her neck. “Oh yeah,” she muttered as her conversation with Mal rushed back to her. “When you said you’d enter for extra credit, I thought you meant in science—you know, a report on physics…”

Mal laughed. “Nah, I meant art class. Why? Does it matter?”

“No. It’s just… I know teleport science isn’t your thing. And believe me, I’m grateful you guys said you’d come, and I’m all for, you know”—she pointed at Ron—“selling stuff”—she gestured to Mal—“and taking photos, but… we have to keep up with everyone else. They eliminate teams each day, and if we get cut, there’ll be no swag or photos.”

Ron cocked his left eyebrow. Then his right. Then his left. He switched back and forth at a steady pace. After the sixth or seventh time, Lexi couldn’t help but laugh.

“Seriously,” she said, lightly punching her fist into her palm. “I’m all for having fun, but we have to concentrate on the tournament. That’s the whole point.”

“Got it,” Ron said. “Don’t worry, Magill. It’ll be fine. I’m looking forward to it. I love logic puzzles and stuff like that.”

Mal adjusted her scarf. “Yeah, and I love traveling through Europe. I want to go to as many places as possible. We’ll be super-fast.”

Lexi let out a breath, feeling a little better. While she didn’t expect Ron or Mal to know enough science to actually help during the tournament, there was a difference between not helping and slowing her down. “Okay. Thanks, guys.”

Ron hopped onto the picnic bench and stepped atop the table. He looked over the crowd. “All right, so let’s talk about this tournament. Who’s our fiercest competition?”

“Good question,” Mal said as she joined Ron on the tabletop.

Smiling, Lexi climbed up, too. She noticed Haley’s Comets, the Physics Phenoms, Tesla’s Techies, and several other teams of former classmates or summer science camp pros mingling in the lot. Jealousy rumbled through her. She’d give anything to be down there, laughing and talking about potential science problems they’d encounter in the tournament.

Next year. Next year, that’ll be me.

“Earth to Lexi,” Mal said, giving her a poke. “What do you think? Who do we have to watch out for?”

Everybody. Lexi motioned to the middle of the lot. “Well, everyone from the academy and STEM competitions will definitely be good.”

“STEM?” Mal said. “That’s Science, Tech—”

“—nology, Engineering, and Mathematics,” Lexi interrupted. “There are competitions throughout the year.” She identified the main teams before flipping her hand toward three sparkling silver shirts. “And that’s Haley’s team. She’s my best friend and real smart, too.”

“Hmmm,” Ron said. “Who won last year?”

Lexi stared into the crowd. “The Mighty Sanbornes. David and Daniel are twins. They just turned fourteen, so this is the last year they can run. They’re entering with their sister, Ashley. She’s twelve, like us, so this will be her first tournament. I don’t see them yet, though.”

“Mighty Sanbornes,” Ron murmured. He smoothed his hands together. “Good to know.”

A horn blared, and Team RAM jolted. Lexi watched as Dr. Harrison proceeded to a makeshift stage at the front of the parking lot. With a squeal, she hurriedly leaped to the ground and grabbed her notebook. The tournament was about to start.