Chapter One Bitsy''s chair vibrated as a massive hatch opened in the middle of the laboratory floor, revealing a vat of swirling acid-yellow slime. The rest of the class sat in a tense circle around it, eyeing the slime warily. "To become conjurors, you must learn to concentrate in high-pressure situations. This quiz will test how well you can focus." At the front of the laboratory, Professor Doyle tightened her fingers around a crescent brooch pinned to her navy overalls. The brooch glowed blue, and Bitsy realized it must be made of farthingstone. "What''s she conjuring?" Bitsy''s best friend, Kosh, hissed, peering over the tips of his sneakers. "And what is that stuff?" Bitsy had a horrible feeling it was some sort of chemical.
She surveyed the other twelve-year-old initiates, all inching back in their chairs. Everyone wore crash helmets and the same black conjuring overalls made of a unique fireproof, waterproof, and nonconductive fabric. "I''m not sure, but I think if we get the wrong answers in this quiz, we might find out." Professor Doyle had one pair of safety goggles hanging around her neck and another poking out of her bushy brown hair, which was as wild and tangled as a bird''s nest. Her eyes sparkled excitedly as a cloud of copper particles--farthingdust--spurted out of her brooch with a soft crackle. The farthingdust whirled through the air like a flurry of autumn leaves and, within seconds, transformed into a plump four-legged creature with pine-cone-shaped ears. The beast dropped onto the professor''s desk with a loud thud. Goose bumps prickled along Bitsy''s arms.
It didn''t matter how often she saw a magicore being conjured, it never failed to amaze her. This species looked a bit like a raccoon with a broad face, a pointed snout, and a long tail. Its stripy fur was metallic black and silver, growing in spiky tufts all over its body like a coat of iron filings. Its zigzag whiskers vibrated as it scurried around the professor''s desk, nosing through her apparatus. "This is my xenom, Thermo," Professor Doyle announced, pulling a pencil out of her hair and pointing it at Thermo''s bottom. "Note the distinctive ring markings around his rear end. Xenoms are conjured from curiosity and have a multitude of skills." Thermo lifted his head, his blue eyes glittering like sapphires.
He wiggled his tail . and vanished into thin air. A moment later, he reappeared with one paw outstretched as if to say, Ta-da! A few initiates nervously applauded. As Thermo resumed snooping around the professor''s desk, Bitsy watched his pine-cone ears pivoting like satellites probing for new signals. With his radar-like senses and inquisitive nature, she could see how his source emotion was curiosity. "Question one," Professor Doyle said. "Like all magicores, Thermo can cast an illusion that turns him invisible. What is this illusion called?" Bitsy confidently raised her hand, eager to answer.
To her surprise, she noticed that everyone in the class had followed suit, except for one boy with spiky blond hair seated a few chairs to her left. Professor Doyle pointed to a girl with round glasses. "It''s called a shade ," the girl said, glancing anxiously at the slime. "That is correct!" Professor Doyle exclaimed. She waved her pencil like a conductor''s baton, and Thermo''s nose twitched. With a loud screech, the blond boy''s chair slid toward the hatch, tipped forward, and dumped him headfirst into the slime. He gave a gurgling cry as he disappeared under the surface. Gasps and screams filled the room.
"What happened to him?" Bitsy cried, tingling with shock. "I assure you he''s perfectly safe," the professor replied with a mischievous grin. "He got slimed because he lacked confidence in his knowledge. In high-pressure situations, there is no room for hesitation. Now, watch carefully: Xenoms can also defy gravity and move at incredible speeds." With a flick of the professor''s pencil, Thermo leaped over the slime vat and gracefully strutted toward the ceiling as if climbing invisible stairs. Then, in a blur of black and silver, he pinballed from one side of the laboratory to the other, returning in a flash to the professor''s desk. Everyone''s jaws dropped.
Bitsy blinked and shook her head, feeling a dizzying mix of astonishment and worry. She flashed Kosh a lopsided grin. It was difficult to believe that just three months ago they hadn''t even known magicores existed, and now they were training to be conjurors at the European Conservatoire of Conjuring. The conservatoire was open only on evenings, weekends, and holidays, and if their other workshops were as thrilling as this, the rest of the summer holidays would be nothing short of amazing. Professor Doyle tapped her pencil on the edge of her desk. "Every magicore species also has one unique ability. Your next question is, What is a xenom''s unique ability?" As if on cue, Thermo''s fur bristled. All around the laboratory, objects started to move.
A microscope slid across a workbench, a jar of thermometers toppled over, and a stopwatch tumbled off a shelf and clattered onto the floor. Everyone looked around twitchily at one another, desperate to raise their hands but uncertain what the answer was. "Any idea what Thermo''s doing?" Kosh whispered. Bitsy watched a paper clip in her reporter''s notebook slide to the edge of the page. "I''m not sure!" They both jumped as the doors of a cabinet flew open at the back of the laboratory with a loud bang. The cabinet rattled and a blizzard of equipment came shooting out. Pipettes, spatulas, and tongs went flying around the room. Scissors cartwheeled through the air, and batteries whizzed about like bullets.
A few items plopped into the slime and disappeared under the swirling surface. "Look out!" Kosh yanked on Bitsy''s arm, pulling her out of the path of a speeding Bunsen burner, its rubber hose flailing like a whip. "Thanks," she said, her pulse racing. "Hold on to your stuff!" Initiates cried out as objects struck their helmets, and people started crawling under their chairs to take cover, careful to avoid falling into the slime. Under one chair, a freckly girl with round cheeks raised her hand. "Can xenoms move objects with their minds?" she said in a panic. "Like, telekinesis?" "Good try," Professor Doyle said, raising her voice above the racket. "But I''m afraid that''s incorrect!" The girl''s chair suddenly zoomed forward, pulling her with it.
She scrabbled to hold on to something but wasn''t fast enough, and the chair pushed her over the edge and into the slime. Before she could cry out, she was swallowed under the surface. Bitsy''s chest tightened, hoping the girl was OK. As she and Kosh took shelter under their chairs, items rocketed from people''s unzipped bags. Mobile phones, stainless-steel water bottles, pencil cases--even a Nintendo Switch--zoomed through the air and began spinning around the laboratory in a lethal vortex. Bitsy felt her new watch vibrating on her wrist and clamped her hand over it so she didn''t lose it. Her dad had given it to her for her birthday only two days ago. "Hey!" Kosh yelled as a bunch of keys flew out of his pocket.
Dangling from them was a photo key ring of a German shepherd named Elvis, who belonged to Kosh''s great-aunt. "Give those back!" He scrambled out from under his chair and clambered on top, chasing them higher. "Careful!" Bitsy cried as he swiped at his keys. "You might fall in!" Sitting on the professor''s desk, Thermo was concentrating. His prickly eyebrows were drawn together in a deep V-shape, and a small blue tongue poked out the side of his mouth. "Everybody, try to focus!" Professor Doyle called. "Pay attention to what is happening!" With her heart thudding, Bitsy studied the objects flying around the room. There were so many of them that it seemed odd they weren''t colliding with one another.
Whenever two items got close, they appeared to repel each other like . Magnets. That could be the answer! Bitsy didn''t want to risk giving the wrong answer, but she also didn''t want to stay quiet, as both options appeared to get you slimed. She cautiously raised her hand above the workbench, hoping not to get stabbed by a rogue compass. "Yes?" Professor Doyle asked. "The objects are behaving a bit like, uh ." Bitsy glanced at the slime, her mouth suddenly dry. "Go on," Professor Doyle said, nodding encouragingly.
"You can do it. Just apply the science." Bitsy clung on to a chair leg just in case. "They''re behaving like magnets. So, perhaps xenoms have the power to control electromagnetic fields?" Professor Doyle''s eyebrows jumped. For a heart-stopping moment, Bitsy thought she''d said the wrong thing. And then . "Correct!" Professor Doyle cheered.
"Thermo can generate and control energy in the electromagnetic range, allowing him to manipulate objects containing magnetic metals such as iron, nickel, or cobalt.".