CHAPTER 8

Swamped

At school on Wednesday, Ellie held her breath during reading. The classroom reeked like a tuna-and-toxic-waste sandwich. But Ellie knew what was really responsible for the smell — the compost heap decaying outside.

Saving the world is a stinky job, Ellie thought.

When it was time for science, the teams continued to work on their projects. Ellie helped Joshua empty the classroom recycling bin. Then it was time to meet Hannah at the oak tree. But since the air was chilly, she needed to get her cape first.

A frosty glare hit Ellie as she closed her locker. “Hannah!” she said, jumping back. “For a second, I thought you were the Ice Queen. Her look is so cold, it can turn you into a Popsicle!”

“I know you don’t want to hear this,” Hannah said, “but your copy’s superhero skills could use some work. Ellie #2 isn’t helping our team.”

Truthfully, Ellie knew Hannah was right. Ellie #2 was about as helpful as a wrecking ball. But it was Ellie’s super duty to complete the list. She couldn’t ask Hannah for help now — especially not after she’d made such a big deal about doing it on her own.

“What do you mean?” Ellie asked as if she didn’t have mind-reading powers.

“First, she bulldozed the grass,” Hannah said. She held up a finger to keep count. “Second, she piled up junk. Third, she made the classroom stinky. And what about this morning? Did you see all the flowers she planted?”

Before school, Ellie #2 had snuck over to add animal food to the habitat. She had planted enough tulips and sunflowers for every rabbit and chipmunk in the neighborhood.

“Maybe she’s excited about helping?” Ellie offered.

“Excited? You can say that again. Look at what she did to my T-shirt!” Hannah held up her Team Earth T-shirt.

The stick figure of Hannah had been crossed out. So had the words Team Earth. In their place, Ellie #2 had written a new name — Team Ellie.

“Ellie isn’t helping,” Hannah finished. “She’s taking over our project!”

Ellie could see that even without X-ray vision! “I’ll take care of my copy,” she replied. “Right now she’s watering the flowers. She said they looked thirsty.”

Ellie’s dad had agreed to let them use the Ultra Soaker for their project. That way, all the plants would get enough to drink.

“Good luck with… yourself,” Hannah said. Turning to leave, she added, “I have to get the birdbath I made. I’ll meet you outside!”

As Hannah stomped off to her locker, Ellie thought about how she’d handle Ellie #2. She’d battled bots and tamed T-Rexes. But she’d never had to stop another superhero.

Just then, a pesky nose poked into the hallway. Ellie knew exactly who it belonged to — Dex Diggs, unstoppable master meanie.

“Hey, Ellie Ugh-tra!” he called. “I saw your animal home. Nice work.”

Dex’s words struck fear into Ellie’s heart. Evil masterminds never said anything good. It was against the law of evil.

“What are you talking about, Dex?” she asked.

“Duh! Your habitat,” Dex replied with a smirk. “It’s seaweed soup! What will live there? A swamp monster?”

I wish Dex would go live in a swamp, Ellie thought.

Ignoring her pesky classmate was usually the best defense, but this time was different. A gut feeling — not to mention a quick peek at his mind — told Ellie something was off.

Breaking free from the mastermind, Ellie hurried outside to the oak tree. “Popping plasma!” she shouted when she saw their habitat.

Team Earth’s project was underwater — literally! Tall, grassy leaves poked out of a murky pool. Frogs belly-flopped while turtles snapped on the uprooted tree. At the edge, a long hose pumped gallons of water into the soaked space. It was the Ultra Soaker!

Ellie glanced around, but Ellie #2 was nowhere in sight. She had gone off and left the soaker running!

“The habitat’s sunk!” Ellie cried.

Jumping into action, she grabbed the soaker and forced the nozzle skyward. The invention thrashed around like a grouchy sea serpent. It gurgled noisily and sprayed water every which way as Ellie fought to keep her grip.

Through sopping curls, Ellie noticed the speed on the nozzle. Her copy had set it to WIPE OUT!

“Oh, no!” she said with a gasp. “Ellie went overboard — again!”

Ellie knew she had to pull the plug on her copy’s plan. Flying up, over, and through, she made a knot in the Ultra Soaker, tying off the water.

The soaker quieted down, except for a slurping sound coming from its suction cup. It was still sucking in water!

With nowhere to go, the water formed a bubble in the invention’s long hose. It expanded wildly, stretching the soaker to the limits of stretchiness. The Ultra Soaker was about to explode!

Fast as a falcon, Ellie pulled the Rain, Rain, Go Away lever. But it was too late.

SPLOOOSH! The bubble popped, erupting into a tidal wave. The water shot toward the heavens, then sprinkled down like a soft spring shower.

Ellie wiped the rain from her eyes. “Dad’s invention!” she exclaimed, staring at the hole in the Ultra Soaker. Dad would need a team of super-genius scientists to patch it.

Squish. Squish. Squish. Ellie’s feet sloshed through the soggy clearing as she took in the damage.

There were limp leaves. There were mucky puddles. The habitat was a huge patch of mud. Worse than that, the odor from the compost heap hung in the air like P-U perfume.

“This isn’t a good home for anything,” Ellie muttered, avoiding a snapping turtle. “Not even for a swamp monster.”

Ellie twirled into a tornado. After drying off, she planted herself on the uprooted tree to think.

How was she ever going to save Team Earth? Her copy had messed everything up. Now Ellie needed more help than ever.