by Tracey West
Clang! Metal clashed against metal as the lance and the sword hit each other.
“Who put you in charge?” Lance asked. “You’re not the boss of me.”
Clang! Clang! Clang!
“I’m the only one here who truly lives by the Knights’ Code!” Clay replied as the two traded blows.
Clang! Clang!
“Boys! This is totally unproductive,” Macy said, but Lance and Clay ignored her and kept battling.
“Axl! A little help here!” Macy called out.
Axl gulped down the last bite of the chicken leg he was eating and came over. He picked up Clay in one hand and Lance in the other.
“Come on, guys, you’re giving me an upset stomach,” Axl said.
Clang! The two knights kept fighting, even though their feet were dangling above the floor.
“I see you had to call reinforcements. Not something a true leader would do,” Lance told Clay.
“At least I’m not lying around rubbing people the wrong way!” Clay shot back.
Macy sighed, shook her head, and left the training room. Those two were hopeless!
Over in the castle, Robin and Ava were busy at work in the computer room. Robin had just attached radar dish helmets to five Squirebots.
“Radar helmets check out,” he said. “Now what?”
Ava called up an image of Knightonia on her screen. “Put these guys in strategic locations around the city and we can triangulate the origin of that weird signal we got earlier,” she replied.
“Ready!” the Squirebots said excitedly. They turned on their radar helmets, then headed out to locate the signal.
The Book of Monsters sniffed the air as the Book Keeper moved him through the dark forest. Jestro followed behind them. He kept waving his staff in the air and making weird faces.
“What are you doing? Other than being annoying?” the book asked him.
“I’m practicing my evil poses,” Jestro replied. “You said practice makes perfect.”
“I mean practice being actually bad, not a poser,” said the book. “You need to be ready to use me to call forth nasty, awful monsters.”
“Okay,” said Jestro. Then he moved away and turned back again, snarling and waving his arms in the air. “How about this one? Haaaa!”
The Book of Monsters rolled his eyes. “Oh, I am terrified,” he said in a voice that proved he clearly wasn’t. “You make me want to cry for my mommy, Jestro the Evil.”
Jestro nodded. “Jestro the Evil? I like the sound of that!”
The book sniffed the air again. “Hey, I smell something! It’s that way.”
The Book Keeper ran off with The Book of Monsters.
“No, the other way!” cried the book.
The Book Keeper changed direction.
“Oh yeah!” said the book, sniffing again. “I smell a magic book nearby. And it smells bad.”
Jestro looked around nervously as they walked deeper into the forest. Even though it was morning, no sunlight came through the trees here. No birds sang. He shivered.
Then a white rabbit hopped toward him. Jestro was relieved to see something so cute in this gloomy place.
“Look, it’s a harmless little bunny!” he said, reaching toward it.
The bunny’s eyes turned red and it growled, revealed sharp fangs. Jestro backed away in fear. “Ahh! That’s the most vicious rodent I’ve ever set eyes on!” he yelled.
“I know why,” said The Book of Monsters. “Look! The Book of Evil!”
There, lodged in the dirt, was a book with a purple cover adorned with a glowing yellow symbol.
“It doesn’t look so bad,” Jestro said.
He picked it up—and black ooze crawled out of it into his hands, and then spread over his body. His costume changed from purple and blue to dark blue and red. A strange yellow glow came over his eyes. The points on his jester hat curled up to look like horns.
“Quick! Quick! Feed me!” cried The Book of Monsters.
Jestro tossed The Book of Evil to The Book of Monsters. He caught it in his mouth and greedily chewed and swallowed it down.
“Let’s party!” yelled The Book of Monsters with an evil cackle.
* * *
Back in the castle, Ava studied the map of the city. The Squirebots with radar helmets showed up as blinking dots.
Robin’s face popped up on the screen. “That’s the last radar Squirebot. How’s it look?” he asked her.
“Great,” she replied. “Grid is set, five-by-five.”
Macy walked in. “Radar Squirebots? What are you guys doing?”
“Trying to restore the castle’s operating systems and power,” Ava answered. “But we’ve been getting weird messages.”
“Messages?” Macy asked.
Suddenly, Ava’s computer screen flickered. Lights flashed. A blurry shape appeared on the screen.
Then a voice crackled from the screen. “Jes … Att … Castle … Jes … tro.”
“There it is!” Ava cried. Then she frowned. “I can’t locate it.”
“Who is it?” Macy asked. “What do they want?”
The screen flickered, and then it went dark.
“It’s gone,” Ava said. “But I may have gotten a fix on the Wi-Fi source.”
Macy looked worried. “What’s going on?” she wondered.
* * *
Early the next morning, the knights returned to the training room in the Joustdome. Aaron zipped around the room on his hover shield, doing flips and other tricks. He hovered in the air next to Axl, whose shield was piled high with food.
“This Knightronic Shield is the best hoverboard I’ve ever had,” Aaron reported.
“Mine works best as a plate,” said Axl. He brought the shield to his open mouth, tipped the food inside, and swallowed it in one gulp. Then he let out a loud burp.
Nearby, Clay and Lance were still trading blows with their weapons.
“Respect the Knights’ Code,” said Clay as his sword clanked weakly against Lance’s shield.
“Respect my nap time,” said Lance, stifling a yawn.
He swept at Clay with his lance, and the two knights fell into each other, exhausted.
“You take nothing seriously,” said Clay.
“And you’re super bossy,” Lance countered.
Macy entered and looked around the room. Aaron was doing tricks on his hover shield, Axl was eating, and Clay and Lance looked like they had been fighting each other all night. She shook her head.
How were they supposed to battle monsters if they couldn’t work together and come up with a plan?
Let’s make some monsters!” Jestro cried.
“Some evil, nasty monsters!” agreed The Book of Monsters. He could feel the power from The Book of Evil flowing through him.
Jestro threw open the book. On every page, monsters moved and called to them, anxious to get out.
Jestro waved his wand over the open pages. “Nasty, evil monsters, come forth and serve me! Make the folks around us wet their pants and flee!”
Globlins, Bloblins, and Scurriers bounced out of the book, cackling and laughing.
“How great is this?” Jestro asked. “More!”
He waved his staff again, and two huge monsters appeared. One was Sparkks, the one-eyed giant who had been released in the library. The second was just as tall as Sparkks, with a body glowing fiery red; a mouth full of nasty teeth; two glowing, yellow eyes; and a gray, curved horn on each side of his head.
“Burnzie and Sparkks, ready to serve you,” the two monsters said.
“Excellent!” said Jestro. “I’ll have a tuna on rye with a pickle and coleslaw.”
“To serve your plan for evil vengeance, joke-boy!” The Book of Monsters snarled. “They’re horrible monsters, not waiters.”
“Right,” said Jestro. “Then let’s go hassle those jerks in the castle!”
* * *
In the castle, the knights didn’t know that a monster army was on its way to attack them. Clay wa
s working out with a bench press, lifting a metal pole with a Squirebot hanging on each end.
“I agree with you, Macy,” Clay was saying. “We should be training and ready for everything.”
Lance and Axl were playing a video game.
“You guys worry too much,” said Lance.
Macy shook her head. “We need to get organized and get out there and be knights.”
“Woo-hoo!”
Aaron whizzed by on his hover shield and grabbed Macy by the arm, taking her with him.
“You’ve tried all day to get everyone organized, Macy,” he said as they flew around the training room. “Maybe you just let them … chill.”
“Chill? Just chill, Aaron?” Macy asked angrily. She hopped onto the hover shield and turned to face him. “The kingdom needs us. My father needs us. Whoa!”
They crashed into a stack of boxes. Macy tumbled off the board and tossed a box that had landed on her head. She sighed. “And I want to prove to him so badly that I can be a knight.”
Aaron sat down next to her. “I get it. You’ll get your chance.”
“Yeah, but when?” Macy asked.
Whaa! Whaa! Whaa! An alarm rang through the Joustdome, and a red light flashed.
“Uh, sooner than you think?” Aaron asked.
As the knights raced to gear up for battle, Jestro and The Book of Monsters approached the castle with their army of monsters.
“I feel … a little queasy,” Jestro said. Even though he was trying to be evil, the idea of attacking the castle didn’t feel right to him.
“Don’t barf on me,” snapped the book. “Just remember: This is your chance to get back at all those people who laughed at you. Who think you’re nothing but a joke.”
Jestro closed his eyes and remembered everyone laughing and pointing at him. He opened them again, and his eyes were blazing.
“It’s time to attack!” he yelled.
The Book of Monsters grinned. “He’s baaaack, and he’s baaaad!” he cheered. “Time to take down that castle!”
“Burnzie and Sparkks, fling ’em!” ordered Jestro.
The two big monsters scooped up Globlins and hurled them at the castle. They flew over the walls of the castle and landed on the royal balcony.
Two Squirebots leapt in front of the king and queen, their swords raised.
“Protect the king!” yelled one.
“Protect the queen!” yelled the other.
Bop! Bop! Bop! The Globlins knocked them both down.
“It’s an invasion!” the king cried.
The castle gates opened and a squad of Squirebots ran out to try to stop the Globlin onslaught. They trembled when they saw Burnzie and Sparkks, but they bravely faced them.
“Hold your ground!” ordered their leader.
Whomp! Burnzie reached down and tossed them aside, leaving only the leader. The Squirebot raised his sword.
“Have at you!” he cried.
Burnzie breathed on the sword, and it glowed with red-hot heat. The Squirebot dropped it and ran away, screaming.
Laughing, Burnzie picked up a Globlin and rolled it toward an advancing squad of Squirebots. The Globlin slammed into the first one, and the rest of them toppled over like bowling pins.
Sparkks laughed. “Yes!” he cried, high-fiving Burnzie.
Then the castle gates opened again. This time, it revealed the five knights, ready for battle! Their shields and weapons were glowing with power.
“Time to show everyone that we deserved to graduate from the Knights’ Academy!” said Clay.
Okay knights, let’s hit them on the right flank,” Clay said.
The five knights charged forward.
Clay jumped up and kicked Sparkks in the head. Then he landed on the opposite side of the monster. Sparkks turned around and aimed a punch at Clay. Clay dodged it, and the monster’s fist hit the road and broke the concrete.
Clay jumped up to attack Sparkks again, but this time the monster’s fist hit its mark. Clay fell backward with a thud.
Lance stood over him, grinning.
“You deal with monsters your way, I’ll deal with monsters my way,” he said.
He charged at Burnzie with his lance extended. Burnzie grabbed the weapon and lifted Lance off the ground.
“Puny knight,” he taunted, and then tossed Lance aside. He landed next to Clay and gave him a sheepish grin.
Aaron flew around the courtyard on his hover shield.
“Here comes the stick!” he cried, shooting at Globlins with his crossbow. Blue energy arrows shot out and hit their targets—but the arrows just bounced off the Globlins!
Macy wasn’t having any luck, either. She pounded at the Globlins with her mace, but they kept popping right back.
“I hate these hot little things!” she complained.
Axl swatted at the Globlins with his battle-axe.
“Get off me!” he growled as a swarm of them piled on him.
Jestro and The Book of Monsters advanced toward the battle zone.
“The knights,” said Jestro anxiously.
“They’re nothing!” said The Book of Monsters. “You wiped the floor with that Moorington guy.”
“But Clay was always good to me,” Jestro said.
“Don’t go soft on me!” the book snapped. “He still let people laugh and laugh. They all laughed at you.”
Up in the royal balcony, a Globlin came flying toward King Halbert. Queen Halbert jumped up and kicked it away.
“Lay off my king!” she said angrily.
More Globlins flew toward the balcony, and the queen grabbed the nearest weapon she could find—a Squirebot. She picked him up and used him as a baseball bat to knock away the little red monsters.
Down below, the knights did their best to protect the castle gates, but the monsters kept yelling.
“Hold them off! Hold them off!” Clay yelled.
Lance batted away Globlins with his lance, but they kept bouncing back.
“Crazy burning blobs!” he yelled. “These weapons have almost no effect on these monsters.”
“And you’ve got the best weapons money can buy,” Macy remarked as she smacked two Globlins with her mace.
“I know, right?” Lance replied.
“We’ve got to get organized,” Macy said. “We’re being overrun!”
Clay jumped and landed next to her. “Just keep fighting!” he said, hitting two Globlins with his sword.
The Globlins just kept coming and coming. They swarmed Axl until he couldn’t fight them off anymore. They knocked him down and bounced on his armor.
“I’ve decided I don’t like monsters,” he announced.
Aaron zipped up on his hover shield. “They don’t like you either, big guy!” he said. He shot at the Globlins with his energy arrows.
The Book of Monsters grinned at Jestro. “I told you they’d be no match for you and your monsters.”
Jestro laughed with glee. “I’m good at something!” he cried happily. Then his smile turned into an evil snarl. “I’m good at being bad!”
In another part of the castle, Ava and Robin followed a radar Squirebot into Merlok’s library.
“I finally locked onto it,” Ava said. “This is the source of that mysterious signal.”
“Here?” asked Robin. “This place has been blasted to bits.”
Ava walked over to the computer console and turned it on. A blue holographic screen appeared in front of her. She quickly typed on the keyboard. The blue screen suddenly turned golden yellow.
“Whoa, power surge,” said Robin.
“What’s going on?” Ava wondered.
Golden light poured from the screen. It filled the library. Then the light took shape on top of Merlok’s desk.
“I am Merlok!” the golden figure cried.
Ava and Robin gasped. The figure of Merlok had appeared on the holographic projector.
“No way! Merlok!” Robin cried. “Well, more like Merlok 2.0.”
“Merlok 2.0
?” Ava asked. “Really? That sounds like an operating system from twenty years ago.” She thought for a moment. “I guess it’s better than Merlok Beta, but not by much.”
“You’re missing the point,” Merlok 2.0 said. “I’m here to help you.”
“Yeah, now he’s like a digital wizard,” Robin said. “This is pretty awesome.”
“We’ll work on the naming thing after we fight some monsters,” said Ava.
“Yes!” cheered Merlok 2.0. “Get ready for NEXO Scan!”
Ava quickly patched into Clay’s communication system. Clay heard her voice through his shield.
“Clay, it’s Ava,” she said.
“I’m a little busy right now, Ava,” Clay said as he struck Sparkks with a blow from his sword.
“I need you to stop fighting and point your shield to the sky,” she said.
“What?” Clay asked.
“Just do it!” Ava said firmly.
Clay did it. He pointed his shield to the sky.
Energy crackled in the air above him, and a holographic golden dragon took shape! The dragon exploded into golden energy that downloaded into Clay’s shield, charging it.
“NEXO Power: Dragon of Justice!” Merlok 2.0 yelled.
The power surged through Clay’s shield into his sword and armor. Glowing with golden power, he swung at a Globlin. The creature dissolved into a puff of black smoke and then vanished.
“It’s Merlok!” Clay realized. He called out to the other knights. “Raise your shields up. Do it!”
Lance, Macy, Aaron, and Axl obeyed. The NEXO Power downloaded into their shields and powered up their weapons and armor, too.
Merlok’s voice came through their shields. “Show them the power of the NEXO KNIGHTS heroes!”
Lance’s lance sliced through the fiery Globlins.
Poof! They turned into smoke and disappeared.
Macy smashed them with her mace.
Poof! Globlins gone.
Poof! Poof! Poof! Aaron took out the Globlins with his arrows.
Bam! Axl send them packing with his battle-axe.
Jestro looked on in horror.
“What’s going on? How are they destroying my monsters?” he asked.
“I ain’t The Book of Answers, but I bet that Merlok has something to do with this,” guessed The Book of Monsters.