Free Saving Montgomery Sole by Mariko Tamaki

all-powerful,” Thomas asked with a raised eyebrow.
    â€œOh,” I said. “No. What’s it called? To know everything.”
    â€œOmniscience.” Naoki said, tilting her head. “I think that would be tiring. I mean, everything . And knowing it. You could never go see a movie again.”
    â€œNo thanks,” Thomas said.
    â€œOkay, maybe not everything,” I conceded. “Just … what’s coming at me.”
    Thomas stood and picked up his bag, which that day was this kind of weird-looking basket like you would expect Mary Poppins to use or something. “So concludes the meeting of the fabulous Mystery Club. And now,” he finished, bowing deeply, “I’m off to continue my valiant effort to bring some modicum of culture to Jefferson High.”
    â€œDraaaamedy,” I droned.
    â€œDramedy,” Naoki repeated, watching Thomas slip out the door. “It’s such a funny name. It doesn’t feel like a word.”
    â€œIt’s not. Oh hey! ” I said, reaching into my bag and pulling out the Eye. “Look! It arrived!”
    â€œOh!” Naoki leaned over and put her face close to the dangling stone. “It’s like a mirror, it’s so black!”
    I sat up and lay the stone flat on my hand. “Yeah,” I said. “I guess.”
    Naoki moved so she was squished right next to me, seeing it from my angle, presumably. “Does it work?”
    â€œUm, I don’t know. I haven’t really done anything with it yet. I mean, yesterday I tried to see if any of, you know, the typical ESP things would work with it. But nothing really happened.”
    â€œWell,” Naoki said as she stood and slung her bag over her shoulder, “you’re supersmart. You’ll figure it out.”
    â€œSure,” I said, trying to sound convinced and not just disappointed. I slipped the stone back into my bag and scrambled to my feet.
    In the hallway, Naoki stopped and put her finger on my chest. “You just have to figure out what you need to know,” she said. “I bet that’s it.”
    â€œCould be,” I said.
    Naoki headed off to her locker, and I turned to head home.
    What do I need to know?
    I mean, maybe it’s not about a person , I thought. Maybe it’s something bigger. Don’t I have a whole list of stuff I wanted to know? I mused, grabbing my phone out of my pocket and scanning through it … until I nearly slammed into a wall, much to the amusement of what looked like the football team, and Matt Truit.
    â€œ Nice going! ” some guy in a baseball hat yodeled.
    â€œ Watch your face, Sole! ” Matt hollered. “Bus-ted!”
    Clearly, knowing the basic layout of the school would be a start.
    *   *   *
    I spotted the posters on my way home from school.
    THE REVEREND WHITE WILL SAVE YOU
    They were everywhere, on telephone poles and mailboxes all over, colorful, glossy photos of the Reverend White in various poses. The Reverend White had white hair and wore white suits. In the pictures, he had his arms around men and women, presumably couples, some of them with babies.
    WE WILL SAVE THE AMERICAN FAMILY, TOGETHER.
    The Reverend White looked down at me from every corner.
    â€œWe will save you,” he said. He sounded so confident in my head.
    I stood on the street corner, California breeze brushing past me as I looked up at him.
    Save me or save this town from people like me? I thought. Save me or destroy me?
    Destroy you.
    Oh yeah?
    I spent the next two hours running from telephone pole to telephone pole, ripping down every poster I could find. He was everywhere, staring at me as I reached up and tore him in half. I needed the superpower of a million Reverend White poster-seeking hands. Until then, one at a time.
    THE REVEREND WHITE IS HERE TO SAVE YOU!
    Riiiiiiip!
    When I got home, I still had two of the posters balled up in my pocket. The house was humming. As