by David Estes
Chapter Sixteen: Powerbracelets: pretty AND useful
Nikki could see something shiny tucked underneath one of the gloves. She reached in and extracted a simple bracelet. It had a thin, silver band inlaid with a single, blue jewel. The jewel was circular and inside of it, Nikki could see the form of a glove, like one of her powergloves, but clear, absent of any color.
“What do you think it does?” Spencer asked, looking over her shoulder at the bracelet.
“I have no idea. The jewel just shows a picture of a powerglove, which could mean anything really. Maybe when I wear it with the powergloves, it makes the abilities even stronger. I would be afraid to try it though, considering how strong the powers are already.”
“Why don’t you try it on by itself?”
Tentatively, Nikki slipped the bracelet over her hand and onto her wrist. A perfect fit. It wasn’t one of those loose fitting bracelets that some girls liked to let jingle and jangle on their arms; rather, it hugged her arm, with no space between the metal and her skin.
Nothing happened. They waited a few minutes, looking at it expectantly. Still nothing. “Maybe it’s just for looks, a symbol of my superhero-ness,” Nikki suggested.
“Maybe,” Spencer said, “but I think you should leave it on.”
“I was planning to,” Nikki said.
Spencer helped Nikki replace the lid on the chest and watched in awe as the chest became pocket-size seconds later. Nikki was used to the shrinking and growing chest by now and it had completely lost its novelty for her.
After they dropped from the tree branches safely past the thorny guardians of The Clubhouse, Spencer said, “I don’t know why we’re walking, you could have just flown us home.”
“Don’t get lazy on me already, Spence. I’m not gonna be giving you flying rides all over town, you know. The powergloves are strictly to be used for hero activities.”
Unexpectedly, the silver on her bracelet turned bright white and the jewel lost all of its blue color, becoming completely clear. Nikki and Spencer gazed down at it in amazement, as the image of the powerglove began to spin faster and faster. As it slowly came to a stop, the image turned green and glowed through the clear crystal.
“Wow,” Spencer marveled. “We should have known everything that came out of that chest would be magic. Get out your green gloves.”
“Why?” Nikki asked.
“I don’t know, but the powerbracelet seems to be telling you to. Maybe you are about to need them.”
Nikki re-expanded and opened the chest, sifting through the colored gloves until she found the green ones. After donning them, she looked at Spencer and firmly pressed her thumb into the leaf symbol. This time, both of the gloves sparkled as if they were covered in millions of tiny emeralds, reflecting the rays of the sun in every direction. The gloves glowed brighter and brighter, and then, to Spencer’s amazement, Nikki disappeared.
