Saanvi Garg, 8Livingston, NJ The Battle of Justice Saanvi Garg, 8 One afternoon in Ratburg, at the castle, Captain Corona, the king, was planning out his evil plan with Spiky The Sidekick, The Deadly Disguiser, and Gus The Gardener. “Ha, ha, ha!” cried Captain Corona. “We shall destroy the world !” he yelled. “Yes king, we shall,” Gus said glumly. “Do not call me king!” he screamed. “A king is a lazy person who orders people around! I am a captain who leads us to evil success!” he demanded. “Yes captain,” Gus replied. “Here is our master plan!” cackled Captain Coronoa. Step 1 – The Deadly Disguiser invites the #SUPERSONIC to dinner in his good form. Step 2 – Gus prepares a special menu. Step 3 – They eat their food and die. To make sure they are dead, Spiky will stab them with Poison Point. Step 4 – We rule the universe! “Step 4 will be extremely simple,” said Spiky. “Oh it better be,” said Captain Corona. Meanwhile… (AKA the superheroes) were exploring their new gadget. It was called a sneaky shield. It is a shield that is invisible. It protects you from anything. The Thoughtful Turtle came up with that. He was inspired by his own powers. They made it for Slithery Snake. It wasn’t because she was weak. It was because she was the captain of #SUPERSONIC. That meant she was the target for most people. “Why don’t I get any of the new gadgets?” Zelda complained. “Well that’s because you’re fast as lightning,” Turtle replied. DING DONG. “Who is it?” Snake replied. “B-B-Berry Bunny? Anyway we are here to invite you to Ratburg castle tonight for dinner.” “Why?” Zelda asked with suspicion. “Ummmm… we would like to hold a party for all the kind-hearted rescues you have accomplished. “Hmmmmm… maybe,” the Turtle said softly. When they left they got ready. Then they put on all their gadgets. They were very suspicious of the party. “We have to stay alert at all times,” Snake informed them. Soon they left for the party. Back at the Ratburg castle… “Wait I got an idea!” said Spiky. “If they find out about the food poisoning then we will need something to kill them.” “Yeah,” muttered Captain Corona, “I was just about to say that,” he said. Then they decided to make a bundle of poison plants over their seats. If they pulled a switch it will fall on their seats. Now they were ready. BING BONG. “Oh, they are here, try to look welcoming,” Captain Corona said in a surprisingly nice tone. “Hello, hello, welcome to the Ratburg castle!” Captain Corona said with a grin. “Oh, it is a pleasure to be here, as well!” Snake said cautiously. “Thank you, shall we start eating then?” Spiky said trying to use his best manners. They took their seats. The #SUPERSONICS were on one side and Captain Corona, Spiky, and Gus were on the other. Zelda carefully examined the room. She thought nothing was wrong until she looked up and took a look at the lights. Something was not right with the lights above their seats. She became a little worried. Gus told them the menu. It is: Appetizer – French Fries and Dip Main Course – Spaghetti or Salad Dessert – Pudding or Ice Cream (that is the poisonous dish but the #SUPERSONICS didn’t know) Then they started to eat. The dip was Zelda’s favorite. She loves to eat chips and guacamole. They filled up their stomachs. Then it was time for dessert. One of The Thoughtful Turtle’s superpower is an extra observant eye. Because of that she thought there was some kind of chemical their dessert. He was right. There was poison in it. But they didn’t know. Snake saw Turtle’s discomfort with the pudding. That is why she didn’t eat any. Zelda or Turtle didn’t eat any either. Soon Captain Corona noticed that they didn’t eat any pudding. He became red with anger. He tried to control himself but he didn’t have much self-control. “WHY DIDN’T YOU EAT ANY DESSERT?” he shouted with anger. By then they had already blown their cover. “Well.. BECAUSE YOU POISONED IT!” Slithery Snake exclaimed. They quickly got out of their seats, but as soon they stood up, Spiky pulled a switch and poison plants fell from the lights aiming for their seats. Turtle blocked it with his shield, Zelda speedily zipped away, and Snake used the Sneeke Shield, their new gadget. Then they all ran away. But before they were fully out of the castle Snake purposely threw a mini bomb into the castle. Then they ran back safely. Then… BOOM! The bomb exploded in the castle. But Captain Corona, Spiky, and The Deadly Disguiser ran out just in time, but the whole castle exploded into pieces. It was a truly unfortunate event for them but they deserved it. But there are many more innocent lives that they have killed. Much much more. But don’t worry, there is more that is about to happen to them by our brave #SUPERSONICS. Stay tuned for our next adventure with our heroes: Slithery Snake, The Thoughtful Turtle, and Zelda the Zapper. BYE!
Stone Soup Magazine for young readers, writers, and artists
Daily Creativity #82: Write about Predator and Prey Switching Places
Write about what may happen if predator and prey switched places (i.e. if a mouse switched places with a bird, or if a fly switched places with a frog). How would the food chain work? How would the prey feel about becoming a predator? How would the predator feel about becoming the prey? You may switch off perspective or focus on one of the two in a poem, play, short story, or other form of media.
The Crossover by Kwame Alexander, reviewed by Daniel, 10
No humans are truly the same: not even identical twins. While on the outside, it might seem like there is no significant difference, on the inside, the case is different. This is demonstrated very clearly in The Crossover, by Kwame Alexander. Two identical twins, Josh and Jordan Bell, both share a love of basketball, but on the inside, they are very different. They have different skills, likes and dislikes, and ways of dealing with others, most notably their father. These differences ultimately estranged the two–temporarily, at least–from each other. The story starts by introducing the unimportant but notable differences between Josh and Jordan. For starters, Jordan prefers to shoot from afar, while Josh would rather drive towards the basket and go up for a dunk. Jordan likes North Carolina, but Josh wants to go to Duke. Jordan likes to trash-talk on the court, but Josh prefers to stay quiet. Josh is also more into academics than Jordan. However, the story continues to show that even small differences can cause big problems. Josh ends up hurting Jordan because Jordan insulted him, showing that there are differences of opinion that come between them. During one game, Josh was late, and had slipped in mud on the way in the gym. As a result, he didn’t start for the first time ever, and was subsequently laughed at by his teammates, most notably Jordan. Josh was finally let back on to the court in the second half, but the image of his brother’s cold laugh stayed in his head, and, during the last few seconds of the game, when Jordan called him by his nickname, “Filthy”, in an insulting way, he just couldn’t stand it any more. Using all his might, he thrust the ball at Jordan’s face, causing him to have a profuse nosebleed. This wasn’t just the result of this insult–it was the result of a series of conflicts between the brothers, especially over a bet that caused Josh to cut his hair, and also the fact that Jordan started spending more time with his girlfriend than Josh. The two brothers did not get along, and little differences piled up into a major conflict. These minor personality differences caused the relationship of the two to be fractured like never before. But although the two siblings were estranged for a long time after that incident, there was something even bigger coming their way. Although “The Incident” had a big impact on Josh and Jordan, their father’s heart disease overshadowed it all. Yet even then, the siblings took on completely different perspectives on the situation. After the first time Josh and Jordan’s dad fainted, their mother suspected that it was because of the heart disease that was known for a long time to run in their father’s family. As his symptoms became more and more serious, Josh and Jordan were forced to make an opinion about the situation. Josh decided that it was nothing serious, but Jordan believed the opposite. Josh resented the fact that they had to start eating healthy, but Jordan seemed to accept that it was the only way to lower their father’s risk. Suddenly, they found their father in the hospital, death looming over him. But the brothers’ opinions about him did not waver. Josh knew that the final, and most important, game in the basketball season was coming up, and did not want to wait in the hospital for a small maybe. Jordan, however, would stay as long as he could next to his father, and decided not to play in the final game. But even so, their shared grief at their father’s death a few days after was enough to bring them back together, despite all their differences. Although the brothers look the exact same on the outside, they have very different personalities on the inside. And when these differences clash, the damage done can be even bigger than surface differences. It’s not their body being hurt: it’s their heart. But in the end, sharing something–either a love of basketball or grief over their father’s death–helped bring Josh and Jordan back together. Ultimately, sharing a trait or feeling, even if it’s just one, can bridge the chasm of difference. The Crossover by Kwame Alexander, Houghton Mifflin, 2019. Buy a copy of this book here and support Stone Soup in the process! Have you read it too? Leave a comment below!
