Morning Sparks

Ms. Sketch Sheep adjusted her silver mask as she walked through the lobby of the Sketch Sheep Hotel. The walls, made entirely of giant colored pencils, usually glowed with a warm, creative energy. Today, something felt different.

"Good morning, Ms. Sketch!" called Bella, the front desk clerk. She was a cheerful deer with brown fur and kind amber eyes, wearing her crisp white hotel uniform.

"Morning, Bella." Ms. Sketch paused at the front desk. "Have you noticed anything strange about the hotel today?"

Bella tilted her head. "Now that you mention it, the pencil walls seem a bit dimmer than usual. And the automatic sketch-pads in the guest rooms aren't working properly."

Ms. Sketch touched the nearest pencil wall. The usual warm tingle of creative power felt weaker, like a flashlight with dying batteries. A small frown crossed her sheep features.

"I'll check the power core," she said, though a worried feeling grew in her stomach.

The Silent Cores

Ms. Sketch Sheep stepped into the hotel's power core room. The walls here were made of massive graphite pencils, each one taller than a tree. Usually they hummed with creative force. Now they stood silent.

"Oh my stars!" squeaked a tiny voice.

Ms. Sketch looked down to see a hummingbird hovering near her feet. The bird's feathers shimmered green and blue, and she wore a miniature tool belt around her tiny waist.

"I'm Zippy, the hotel's power engineer," the hummingbird chirped rapidly. "I've been trying to fix this mess all morning! The pencil cores are completely drained."

"Drained? How is that possible?" Ms. Sketch asked.

Zippy's wings beat faster with worry. "Someone's been stealing our creative power! Look at this!" She zipped over to a control panel covered in dials and switches. Every gauge pointed to zero.

Ms. Sketch touched one of the giant pencils. It felt cold and lifeless.

"Without pencil power, the hotel will crumble in three days," Zippy explained. "And there's worse news. I detected the thief's signature. It's coming from the Meadow Utopia Art Critics Society downtown. They're planning something big."

Ms. Sketch's eyes narrowed behind her silver mask. "Then we'd better pay them a visit."