Nikki Tesla and the Fellowship of the Bling

by Jess Keating

  Trouble.

  “Thought you could get rid of us that easy, huh?” Leo’s eyes twinkled, sending my stomach into a flutter. He had this ridiculous way of setting off butterflies inside me. Ever since he’d kissed me on the rooftop of our last mission, I had to work extra hard not to giggle or blush whenever he looked at me. “It’s going to take more than a vacation in the Cloud Forest to hide from us!” he said cheerfully.

  “It’s great to see you all,” I said. A rush of adrenaline warmed my chest. I’d never been surprised by friends like this before. Then again, I’d never really had friends before. I’d been at the Academy for less than a year, but already my classmates felt like family. But that didn’t explain why they’d shown up behind the hotel’s front desk.

  “We know you’re supposed to be enjoying a vacation,” Grace said.“We all are, I will point out.”

  Bert huffed with annoyance. “I was perfecting my spectral cloak,” he said. “It’s going to be the most advanced camouflage technology ever. And then, boom—there’s Grace at my door!” He narrowed his eyes at her, pouting.

  Grace ignored him. “I had no choice,” she said. “Martha sent me. Something’s come up, and she asked me to round up the team to help. Sorry, Nikki, but you need to come with us.”Grace blinked at me, no trace of amusement on her face. “Like, now.”

  “What?!” I glanced behind me, hoping my mother hadn’t followed me in. My parents understood what went on at Genius Academy, but there was no way that they’d be okay with me taking off in the middle of their wedding rehearsal.

  “I can’t randomly disappear,” I said. I ducked my chin down, keeping my voice low. “We’ve got a fancy dinner tonight, and the wedding is in less than a week. I’m supposed to be practicing my walk right now.”

  “Is walking really that hard for you?” Mo questioned, tilting his head.

  Mary shot him a look.“You try it in heels.”

  “Sorry, Tesla.” Grace gave me a half-hearted shrug, but I didn’t miss the glint of amusement as her gaze flicked above my ear. I’d forgotten about the orchid stuck there. I pawed it out of my hair and twisted it in my fingers awkwardly.

  “We’ve been given strict orders. Martha promised to make it up to your parents and explain everything.”Grace checked her watch. “But right now? We’ve got exactly three minutes to get you in the car out back. Or else.”

  I lifted my hands to my hips. I’d already decided. There was no way I was leaving my parents. “Or else what?”

  Grace cracked her knuckles while Mo fiddled with the tiny bell on the countertop. A muted, tinny chime sounded in the air. “Or else we kidnap you,” she said.

  I cackled. “Sure, that sounds reasonable.”

  Bert grinned eagerly while Leo stared at his feet. Nobody was laughing with me.

  “Wait, for real?” I choked. “Martha told you to kidnap me if I didn’t cooperate?”

  Grace shrugged again.

  “I’m afraid so,” Mo said. Rounding the corner of the front desk, he scooped me up and tossed me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes. The others giggled and stepped out of his way as he moved easily toward the door, despite my arguments.

  “HEY!” I yelped. “Put me down! You can’t go around picking up people! I’ll come with you, okay?!”

  Mo grinned, setting me down with a thud. “Sorry,” he said, pointing to the others. “They made me do it.”

  I wrung my hands in frustration and smoothed out my clothes, dusting off the indignation. “Can I at least tell my parents? Or grab my suitcase? Or shoes? Where exactly are we going?”

  Grace barely acknowledged me as she breezed past the group and out the door, holding it open for us to follow. “We’ve already packed your stuff. You can thank Charlie for that.”

  Charlie lifted her hand in a mock salute. “Hotel door locks are delightfully easy to pick,” she said. “I knew you’d want your notebook and stuff.” She reached down by her feet and tossed me a backpack.

  I debated making a run for it so I could at least tell my parents that we’d gotten a new mission. Genius Academy hadn’t exactly been the safest place in the world lately, and I was certain Mom would instantly assume the worst if I disappeared.

  Grace must have noticed my hesitation. “Seriously, Nikki. I promise that Martha will explain everything to them. They’ll understand once they find out why we had to leave.”

  “I hope that will make three of us, then,” I muttered.

  I held Pickles tightly in my arms as I got into the brown van that waited for us. As soon as we had all piled inside and the door slid shut, the driver hit the gas, sending a trail of dust flailing behind us.

  My stomach lurched as I dug through the backpack and pulled out the sneakers that Charlie had packed for me, slipping them onto my feet. Letting the breeze from the open window wash over my face, two unshakable facts rose to the surface of my mind.

  One: I should have known that disappearing into the Costa Rican jungle wouldn’t be enough to keep Martha away. When you’re responsible for saving the world, you don’t ever really get a day off.

  And two: My parents were going to absolutely lose their minds. With only a week until their wedding, I’d be lucky if they ever forgave me.

  But I forced myself to ignore the bumpy dirt road disappearing behind me. If my friends had their heads in the game, I would, too.

  “Okay,” I said finally. “Let’s hear it.”

  A familiar voice came from the driver’s seat, sending the zip of a chill through me. “I’m afraid your vacation is over, Ms. Tesla.”

  I blinked in surprise. “Martha?! Since when do you make house calls? Shouldn’t you be at the Academy, organizing our next move?”

  Glancing at Leo, a new layer of sweat began to prickle on my skin. If the others knew what was wrong, they weren’t letting on. With Martha here in person, whatever was going on had to be big.

  “What’s the mission?” I demanded.

  Martha’s eyes appeared in the rearview mirror, staring me down.

  “I’m sorry for gathering all of you on such short notice,” she said. “You know I wouldn’t do this unless it was entirely necessary.”

  “Martha, you said once we got everyone assembled, you’d tell us what’s going on.” The muscles in Grace’s neck were tight as she spoke. “Whatever it is, we can handle it.”

  Martha pressed her foot heavy on the gas, sending us jerking back in our seats as the van tore through the jungle.

  “It,” Martha said softly, “is the worst we’ve ever seen.”

  “The worst what you’ve ever seen?” Leo pressed.

  Martha’s brown eyes appeared in the rearview mirror once more, the bright Costa Rican sunlight revealing dark circles beneath them.

  “Biological warfare,” she said. “The end of humanity as we know it.”

  All of the characters and events in this book are fictional, yet they are based on some real-life people who have had incredible adventures in human history. You may already be familiar with Nikola Tesla (for whom Nikki is named!), as well as the other students at Genius Academy and their real life historical counterparts. But have you ever heard of Michael Faraday?

  Michael Faraday was born on September 22, 1791.While they were not related like Nikki and her dad, Faraday was a huge influence on Tesla. Unlike some scientists, Faraday was completely self-taught. At age fourteen, he worked as an apprentice to a bookbinder and found himself very curious about the books he was making. He didn’t want to make books—he wanted to read them and learn everything he could. He stayed late at work to read and, eventually, used his knowledge to become an assistant to a local chemist, despite having no formal science education.

  Fast-forward through a lot of lectures, experiments, long days, and hard work, and today Faraday is known as one of the founders of electrochemistry. He discovered electric induction: the premise that if you move a magnet through a metal loop, the metal loop will have an electric current running through it. He used th
is knowledge to invent the first transformer and the first electric generator. These inventions set the stage for all modern transformers, generators, and motors. He also had several inventions and scientific principles named after him, including the Faraday cage, Faraday paradox, and Faraday’s law of induction, among others.

  But Michael Faraday wasn’t just a genius scientist who changed the world with his knowledge and inventions. He was also the founder of the Royal Institution’s “Christmas Lectures,” a special program to introduce science education to children. This series has continued since 1825, pausing only briefly during World War II. Its lectures sparked an interest in science for millions of children, and I have no doubt that he would enjoy the chance to reach new readers and future scientists today.

  To learn more about Michael Faraday, or any of the historical geniuses that inspired the Elements of Genius series, visit your local school or public library.

  Whoa! You’re reading the acknowledgments! When I was younger, I loved reading the acknowledgments, too. (In fact, I still do!) It always felt like a magical peek behind the real life of a book, and all the incredible people it took to make it. It might be my name on the cover, but you know the truth: It takes many people to make a book and even more to get it into your hands! This book belongs to you, and it belongs to everyone listed here.

  I will forever be grateful to Kathleen Rushall, Jenne Abramowitz, and Shelly Romero for their support and editorial eyes on this book. Dick Robinson, Abby McAden, Keirsten Geise, Josh Berlowitz, Rachel Feld, Erin Berger, Jordana Kulak, Lizette Serrano, Julia Eisler, Anne Marie Wong, Anne Shone, Diane Kerner, Nikole Kritikos, Lori Grafstein, Stella Grasso, Denise Anderson, and everyone in the Scholastic and Scholastic Canada families—it’s a joy working with all of you, and your tireless efforts to bring books into the world inspire me every day. Readers, are you curious about the incredible illustrations in this book? You can thank Lissy Marlin for those! (And I will, too—thanks, Lissy!)

  Did you notice the quote at the beginning of this book? I started with Mary Oliver, and I think it’s fitting to end with her. Mary Oliver (a wonderful American poet) believed that we should always keep room in our hearts for the unimaginable. I want to thank my friends, family, and brilliant readers for always inspiring me to stay curious and keep extra room in my heart for all that magic out there. I hope this book inspires you to look for the magic, too—and maybe even make some of your own!

  As a zoologist and author, Jess Keating has been sprayed by skunks, bitten by crocodiles, and victim of the dreaded paper cut. Her books blend science, humor, and creativity, and include the acclaimed My Life Is a Zoo middle-grade trilogy and award-winning picture books, like Shark Lady and Pink Is for Blobfish. Jess lives in Ontario, Canada, where she loves hiking, nerdy documentaries, and writing books for curious and adventurous kids. Jess can be found online at jesskeating.com or on Twitter at @Jess_Keating.

  ALSO BY JESS KEATING

  Nikki Tesla and the Ferret-Proof Death Ray

  Text copyright © 2020 by Jess Keating

  Illustrations by Lissy Marlin, copyright © 2020 Scholastic Inc.

  All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., Publishers since 1920. SCHOLASTIC, SCHOLASTIC PRESS, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc.

  The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume any responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

  Names: Keating, Jess, author. | Keating, Jess. Elements of genius; 2.

  Title: Nikki Tesla and the fellowship of the bling / Jess Keating.

  Description: First edition. | New York: Scholastic Press, 2020. | Series: Elements of Genius; 2 | Audience: Ages 8–12. | Audience: Grade 4 to 6. | Summary: When Mary Shelley is kidnapped by a mad scientist, Nikki Tesla and the other members of the Genius Academy team are forced to agree to steal a priceless, lethal high-tech ring in order to free her; but Nikki also plans to use the heist to get closer to her long-lost father who claims he is not the criminal mastermind she believes him to be.

  Identifiers: LCCN 2019025338 (print) | LCCN 2019025339 (ebook) | ISBN 9781338295276 (ebook)

  Subjects: LCSH: Gifted persons—Juvenile fiction. | Private schools—Juvenile fiction. | Inventions—Juvenile fiction. | Theft—Juvenile fiction. | Fathers and daughters—Juvenile fiction. | Kidnapping—Juvenile fiction. | Adventure stories. | CYAC: Genius—Fiction. | Gifted children—Fiction. | Schools—Fiction. | Inventions—Fiction. | Stealing—Fiction. | Fathers and daughters—Fiction. | Kidnapping—Fiction. | Adventure and adventurers—Fiction. | BISAC: JUVENILE FICTION / Action & Adventure / General | JUVENILE FICTION / Science & Technology | LCGFT: Action and adventure fiction.

  Classification: LCC PZ7.K22485 Nh 2020 (print) | LCC PZ7.K22485 (ebook) | DDC 813.6 [Fic]—dc23

  LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019025338

  LC ebook record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2019025339

  First edition, February 2020

  Jacket art by Lissy Marlin

  Jacket design by Keirsten Geise

  e-ISBN 978-1-338-29527-6

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