Spell Robbers Read Online Free PDF Page B

eyes and released the actuation.
    A jagged shard of ice the size of a football exploded from the air in front of him. It shot down the range, past the last tape marker, and shattered against the wall.
    Ben was stunned.
    Dr. Hughes stared.
    “What was that?” Ben asked with an excited laugh.
    She blinked. “I have no idea. Is that what you meant to actuate?”
    “No. I was still going for snow. But I was also thinking about what you said, and I was trying to focus my thoughts.”
    “You’re certain that is not what you intended?”
    “I swear.”
    “Nothing in my calculations predicted something like this. That could have been dangerous. I —” She paused. “In the interest of safety, I need to revisit the data before we use the portable augmenter again.” She held out her hand.
    Ben gave her the gun, a little reluctant to let it go.
    “Thank you for your work today,” she said. “See you tomorrow afternoon.”
    “Sorry,” Ben said, even though he didn’t feel sorry. He wanted to try the gun again. “See you tomorrow, Dr. Hughes.”

    On his way home, Ben kept his hands in his pockets, watching the sidewalk seams pass underfoot. How had he done that? Made a missile of ice. What else could he do? What were the limits of his power?
    He looked up at the sky, wondering whether he should tell Peter what he had done. Probably not. Dr. Hughes hadn’t specifically asked him to keep it a secret, but Ben figured she wouldn’t want him going around telling everyone else about the augmenter gun that let you shoot ice cannonballs. The gray clouds overhead looked like they might rain. They reminded Ben of his first actuation.
    He stopped.
    Could he do it without the lab equipment? Now that he had figured out how to project his thoughts, how to rise above the noise, maybe he could do what Peter had done that day in the cafeteria. Maybe Ben could make things happen outside the lab.
    He studied the cloud. He thought about where it would rain, and how it would rain, and how the water would patter the trees, and flow down the gutters. He thought about the smell, and the way the grass would get slick. He imagined a warm updraft lifting humid air into the heart of the cloud, where the molecules in the water vapor bumped and gathered together, forming droplets. And then he imagined these droplets getting big enough that gravity got ahold of them and brought them falling down.
    This was a lot bigger than flipping a penny or closing a cafeteria table. But he sent this thought out, an actuation, just as he had with the augmenter gun.
    Then he watched and waited. It seemed like it maybe got a little more windy. But no rain fell. Nothing happened.

“I thought he stopped having you tested.” Ben sat next to Peter on the bus, heading up to the university.
    Peter’s expression and voice came out flat. “I did, too.”
    Ben watched the wavering threads of water stretching across the bus window. The storm had eventually started up this morning. Un -actuated. “So. When do you go in?”
    Peter shrugged with one shoulder. “This Saturday. I’m considering bombing this one on purpose. Maybe the man just needs a sign to give up hope.”
    “Don’t bomb it.”
    “Why not? It’s up to me.”
    “Yeah, but … what your dad does isn’t up to you.”
    Peter fell silent. The bus chugged along and soon arrived at the campus. By the time they reached the basement of the Castle, they were both drenched. But so were the other students, who were all dripping outside in the hallway. The classroom door was closed and locked.
    “Where is Dr. Hughes?” Ben asked.
    “Dunno.” Dylan handed Ben a piece of paper. “This was taped to the door.”
    Ben read the note: Class, I will be late for our session today. Please feel free to take the afternoon off, if you do not want to wait for me. If you do wait, I hope I won’t be long.
    “So she’s coming,” Ben said.
    Abbie shrugged. “Guess so.”
    “I think I’m gonna go,” Julie said.