by Justice Carmon

Brian plopped down in his cafeteria seat, avoiding the kids sitting at the other end of the table. Summer school lunch periods were shorter, and all they wanted to do was talk, talk, talk. He, on the other hand, had something better to do: peruse the latest issue of Light Warrior: Hero From X-Dimension.

Brian had been careful to hide the issue from curious eyes. A teacher might confiscate it. Other kids might make fun of him, or worse, paw through the pristine comic, destroying its value.

Light Warrior—or L.W., as his friends called him—was awesome this issue. After being knocked unconscious and captured by the Allies of Infamy, he was in an intermediate dimension that enabled him to be in two places at once. He could navigate his home dimension and the villain's lair simultaneously. As his friends helped L.W. battle creatures of the Y-Dimension, they were beginning to learn the secret of his powers.

Nobody knew how Light Warrior had gotten his powers or why he'd come to their world. Brian pushed up his glasses as he savored each panel, absorbing the cool artwork and powerhouse action sequences.

“Whatcha got there?” growled a voice behind him.

Turning, Brian's heart dropped to his stomach. It was Kevin. Kevin the jock. Kevin the one who always wanted to fight. Before Brian could react, Kevin snatched the magazine out of his hand. One thing about Kevin—he was fast.

“Light Warrior, huh?” Kevin sneered. “You actually read this? What a joke! If you wanna be a real warrior, why don't you try out for sports? Or are you too light?”

Brian's face flushed with shame as the kids at the end of the table laughed.

If I had Light Warrior's powers, Brian thought, I would show them a thing or two.

Rescue Routine

“Put that down!” commanded a voice from across the cafeteria. Brian and Kevin turned in unison.

Brian's heart jumped from his stomach to his throat. It was Demi from Mrs. Brooks' creative writing class. Demi with long hair and fiery eyes. Demi who was always writing and telling people what she thought. Demi who made even teachers roll their eyes.

“Excuse me?” Kevin said smartly, but Brian noticed his voice lose some of its arrogance.

Demi walked over and pulled a No. 2 pencil from behind her ear. “I said, put it down, Kevin. It doesn't belong to you. Give it back.”

“Or what?” Kevin answered. “You gonna stab me with a pencil?”

“Nooooo,” Demi said slowly. “I'm going to write an article about bullies for the newspaper and use a photo of you as a prime example. If that doesn't work, I'll put it on my personal Web site and start a fund for Brian here to get a full one-year subscription to . . . what's the name of that comic, Brian?”

“Light Warrior,” he whispered, throat suddenly dry. Real Light Warrior readers didn't call it a comic. It was a magazine—or mag for short. But he didn't dare correct her right now.

“Right. Light Warrior,” Demi said authoritatively. “One full year. What do you say in response, Kevin?” She poised the pencil over a small notebook she'd produced seemingly out of nowhere. “May I take a statement for the article I'm writing?”

Kevin grunted, tossed the magazine roughly back onto the table and shrugged his shoulders.

“Whatever,” Kevin shrugged. “Let the kid have his fun.”

Brian hastily picked up the splayed magazine and smoothed a creased page.

“Enjoy your comic, Brian,” Demi said.

“Yeah, thanks.” Brian peered at her through his glasses. “Why'd you do that?”

“My reasons are my own,” she said loftily and walked away.

On the Same Page

After school Brian began reading where he'd left off. As he turned the page, Light Warrior's next words grabbed his attention: “My reasons are my own.” The exact words Demi had used at lunch!

She's read this! Brian thought, his mind racing. She knows about Light Warrior!

Brian wondered what else she knew. It took 24 hours for him to work up the courage to go by her house, but finally his curiosity prevailed.

As he stood on Demi's front porch, Brian wondered if Light Warrior ever felt this nervous. Brian started rethinking his questions, decided they were stupid and turned to leave. Just then the front door opened.

A guy in a motorized wheelchair sat in the doorway. He had a very elaborate chair—the kind you control with your mouth.

“Can I help you?” He looked weak, but his voice was strong.

“Oh. Uh, yeah,” Brian stammered. “I'm Brian. I came to ask Demi a question.”

“I'm Clark, her brother. Hang tight.” He moved his jaw, and the wheelchair spun counterclockwise to face the stairs behind him.

“Demi! You got a visitor!” he yelled.

“Who is it?” Her voice drifted down the stairs.

“Some guy named Brian!”

Brian didn't have to wait long. Demi bounded down the stairs dressed in jeans and a T-shirt. Her hair was wet.

“Oh, sorry, I guess I came at a bad time,” Brian began.

“Don't worry about it,” she said. “Swim practice. Come on in.”

Brian stepped inside and looked around. Demi's home was like his own, except there was less clutter and the halls seemed wider. He guessed it was because of Clark's wheelchair.

“So what's up?” Demi asked, wringing her hair dry.

Brian looked at his feet for a minute, then said, “Why did you do that yesterday? I really want to know.”

“You mean get between you and Kevin over a comic book?” she asked. “Simple. Kevin's a bully. He thinks anyone who can't compete in sports is a loser.”

Brian glanced over at Clark who had wheeled himself into a nearby room. He was busy reading something laid out on a drafting table.

“Oh. I get it,” Brian said quietly. “It's personal.”

Demi followed his gaze. “Yeah, I guess,” she admitted. “But not the way you think—”

Blown Cover

“Oh, man! I can't believe this!” Clark yelled, interrupting her sentence. “Demi, they forgot a word balloon on page 17!”

“What?” Demi said, hurrying to his side. She examined the slim magazine on the table.

“That stinks!” she said. “It will just have to go in the next issue. We can put it on the letters page so readers can cut and paste it themselves!”

Clark sighed. “You're right,” he said. “That'll work.”

Brian looked down at the table to find out what they were talking about. He caught his breath. It was the original artwork for the latest issue of Light Warrior!

“Th-that's issue 12!” Brian stammered. “It's sold out everywhere!”

“I know,” Clark said proudly. “But after all that hard work, it's still a bummer when the publisher messes up.”

Brian's mouth hung open as Clark's words sunk in. Brian glanced around the room, noticing the wall behind him for the first time. It was covered with framed paintings of every Light Warrior cover ever produced. “That's issue 1 . . . and that's 2, 3 and 4. All of them! And more! Issue 13?!”

“Mm-hm,” Clark said. “That's a coming issue. Got it done last week.”

Comic Genius

Brian turned back to stare at Clark. Demi rested her hand on his thin shoulder. Clark gave a lopsided grin. “Well, sis, you were right. He is a real fan.”

“Brian,” Demi said, “I would like you to meet my brother Clark, the artist and editor of Light Warrior: Hero From X-Dimension.”

“You draw it?” Brian asked.

“Sure do.” Clark grinned. “Like this—with my teeth.” Clark learned forward and deftly champed down on the end of a blue pencil. Leaning forward in his chair, he began drawing circles and lines on a piece of paper clamped to the table. In seconds, the unmistakable outline of Light Warrior was revealed. Demi beamed proudly as she lifted the drawing off the table and handed it to Brian.

Gingerly Brian held the priceless treasure in his hands. He swallowed nervously and said, “Wow! Pleased to meet you, sir!”

Clark laughed, dropping the pencil back into its cup. “Chill, man. I'm only 20. Just call me Clark.”

Brian nodded wordlessly and looked hard at Demi. “And you help him?”

Demi threw up her hands in mock distress. “Well, he can't do everything by himself!” she said. “Someone's got to help.”

“She writes dialogue when I need it,” Clark said. “She's good. Real good.”

“My reasons are my own,” Brian quoted with admiration.

“They certainly are!” Demi smiled. “Please don't tell anyone. The other kids would be jealous.” She grinned. “Secret IDs are hard to keep.”

	Q: What dessert do birds like best? A: Chocolate “chirp” cookies. Rawlin K., 11, Louisiana Clubhouse Jr. Click here to subscribe