CHAPTER
ONE
TSEEEWWW!
Zac Powerâs eyes flashed open. Heâd been dozing, but a strange noise had woken him up.
It took him a second to remember that he was in the rescue chopper. There were two other choppers flying alongside his.
Zac was on the way back to GIB Headquarters with the agents he had rescued from the Black Jungle.
He stretched his arms out and yawned. I just need five more minutes to sleepâ¦
TSEEEWWW!
There was another blast. Their helicopters were under attack!
OK, Iâm definitely awake now, Zac thought, trying to peer out the window. He caught a glimpse of the BIG agentâs jet behind them.
âThe BIG Agent!â cried Agent Cougar, as their helicopter dodged left. âHeâs behind us in his jet!â
âYou think?â said Zac, rolling his eyes.
TSEEEWWW!
Their helicopter rattled. Another blast from the BIG agentâs electromagnetic cannon lit up the morning sky, but it just missed them.
TSEEEWWW!
The BIG jet scored a direct hit on the helicopter to Zacâs right. The chopper shuddered and started to fall out of the sky, all of its systems fried.
Zac watched it tumble down towards the ocean.
Three spots appeared in the sky, just beyond the falling chopper. Parachutes.
Zac breathed a sigh of relief. They got out in time, he thought. Theyâll be OK.
He looked out the rear window. The BIG jet was gaining on them.
TSEEEWWW!
Their pilot tried to pull away again, but this time the jet was too close. The blast of blue energy slid along Zacâs side of the helicopter. It wasnât a direct hit, but it was enough to send them spinning off course.
âHang on to your hats, boys!â called the pilot. âThis could get a little bumpy.â
Zac could see the pilot wrestling with the steering controls.The helicopter rattled and shook as the pilot struggled to bring it down safely.
Up ahead, Zac could see a car park that was completely empty, except for one abandoned caravan. Heâd seen this particular caravan before. It was actually a decoy hologram which disguised the secret entrance to GIB HQ.
But as Zac watched, the helicopter zoomed right over the car park.
âHey,â Zac said to the pilot. âYou missed the entrance!â
The pilot chuckled. âDonât think Agent Big Boss would be too happy if I flew a chopper this big in through the front door!â he said. âJust sit tight. Weâll take the heavy vehicle entrance.â
The helicopter gave another lurch.
âAssuming we make it that far,â the pilot added.
Zac looked around, trying to catch sight of the BIG agentâs jet. It seemed to have disappeared, and so had the third GIB chopper.
Zacâs helicopter swung around to the left, and a little clump of trees came into view.The pilot brought them to a stop high above the trees. He hit a button and the helicopter started dropping downwards.
Zac held on tight as they jerked towards the ground. At the last second, the trees disappeared, revealing a wide, open tunnel.
More holograms, Zac thought.
Normally, the tunnel would have easily been big enough for a helicopter to fly through. But their helicopter was acting more like a bull at a rodeo than a finely tuned GIB vehicle.
Bucking and shaking, the chopper crashed down through the tunnel. It scraped against the steel walls, sending sparks flying.
The tunnel opened out into a massive vehicle storage area, filled with row after row of high-tech jets, cars and bikes.
The chopper hit the ground, bounced once, twice, and then crushed a row of Lightning Strike Ultra-Bikes. Finally it skidded to a stop.
Zac turned to the pilot. âNo offence,â he said, âbut next time I think Iâll just take the bus.â
CHAPTER
TWO
Zac and Agent Cougar climbed out of the helicopter into the storage hangar.
The whole place was buzzing with activity, and there were agents running in every direction.
A nervous-looking boy about Zacâs
Jennifer Rose
Kim Devereux
Stuart M. Kaminsky
Tracy Falbe
Jeffrey Toobin
A. M. Hudson
Denise Swanson
Maureen Carter
Delilah Devlin
Alaya Dawn Johnson