Frozen Fear (4 page)
Zac jumped onto the skidoo.
Twisting back the handlebars, he revved the engine. Then he took off. He sped to-wards a huge pile of snow and jumped it.
He flew through the air. Awesome!
By now, the robotic seal had left the research station way behind. It seemed to be heading even deeper into the icy wilderness. The homing device inside the seal was obviously very powerful. The seal was heading, straight as an arrow, for some-where in particular.
But where?
Zac accelerated. He practically flew across the ice towards the seal. He was going to find out!
Then Zac saw a shape looming up out of the gloom. Ahead there were some huge, round storage tanks. Beside those were some long sheds.
It must be some kind of top-secret storage
facility,
thought Zac.
Zac felt sure he was getting closer to cracking the mission. Good thing too. It was already 5.53am.
The GIB team would be there to collect him in eight hours.
Zac parked close to one of the storage tanks, where the skidoo would be in shadow. He cut the skidoo's engine. The sun would be up soon, and Zac couldn't be sure who was watching.
With ice crunching loudly under his snow boots, Zac followed the robotic seal on foot. Silently, the seal slithered over to one of the storage tanks.
Zac watched carefully. The storage tank was fitted with a valve, right down at ground level. Using the suction cap on its nose, the robotic seal anchored itself to the tank. Then, a hose popped up from underneath a hatch in the seal's back. The hose connected to the valve perfectly.
Instantly, the air was filled with a very strong smell. It was a smell Zac recognised.
But what is it?
Zac sniffed again.
It's petrol!
Zac raced over to the storage tank. A metal ladder was fixed to the side. Zac climbed up. On the roof of the storage tank, Zac found a glass viewing-window. He flicked on his torch and shined it through the glass.
The tank was brim-full of petrol!
Pieces of the puzzle began to come together in Zac's mind. The petrol shortage his dad had mentioned. Those petrol tankers mysteriously sinking. Suspicious activity at the Great Icy Pole. And, even more dodgy, robotic seals with drills and suction caps!
Zac's sharp spying brain turned the pieces around and around until he had a theory that made sense.
Robotic seals were drilling into petrol tankers out at sea and stealing petrol. That explained the global petrol shortage.
If you have tankers with tiny seal holes drilled in the side, this would explain why the tankers kept sinking.
The suspicious activity at the Great Icy Pole must somehow be linked to the weird petrol storage facility.
But even as Zac thought this through, more questions occurred to him.
Who is
stealing the petrol? And, more to the point, why?
Zac wished he could use his SpyPad. Then he could discuss his suspicions with GIB. Mission Control would have some ideas. But being out of satellite range meant he would just have to figure it out on his own!
Just then, Zac wished even harder that he could call Mission Control for help. For, hooning towards him at top speed, were a bunch of thugs on skidoos!
His heart pounding, Zac raced to find somewhere to hide. The thugs on skidoos were shouting and waving angrily. They didn't look too happy to discover they weren't alone in the Great Icy Pole.
Were they from the seal research station?
They had to be!
The skidoos roared towards Zac.
Closer. Closer!
Luckily, Zac spotted the perfect hiding place. A big wooden crate stamped with the words, âspare seal flippers'. Just in the nick of time, Zac ducked down behind it, out of sight.
âWhoever locked us in has got to be around here somewhere,' an angry voice growled.
âYeah, I reckon it's probably GIB,' replied a woman. âI hate those GIB goody-goodies.'
Goody-goodies? Maybe Leon, but not me!
thought Zac.
âHey!' said the woman. âFootsteps!'
Oh no!
âI'll just follow them until I find where⦠ah ha!' said the woman.
With an iron grip, a gloved hand grabbed Zac's shoulders.
âLook who we have here. A GIB spy. Zac Power, if I'm not mistaken,' said the woman.
How does she know my name?
Zac wondered.
This gang must really know their stuff!
Zac's eyes slid across to the woman's expensive-looking wrist watch.
He just didn't have time to get captured right now!
Suddenly, Zac twisted free of the wo-man's grip. As fast as he could, he ran towards the skidoo he'd hidden in the shadows. He could hear heavy footsteps behind him.
âLeaving so soon?' asked the man, sounding angry. In a second, he'd caught up to Zac.
âYou should lie down,' the man said.
Lie down? Why?
Zac wondered.
Thenâ¦
CRRRRRRR-UNCH!
The man punched Zac in the nose!
âYou shouldn't run around when you've got a broken nose, Zac,' he went on, smugly.
Pain. Zac's whole face pulsed with it. Grey spots floated before his eyes.
Zac bent double. His nose was seriously hurting. Blood trickled from his nose and splashed on the snow.
Snowâ¦
That was it!
Still bent over and groaning with pain for effect, Zac was sure the thugs didn't know what he was doing.
Standing up, he chucked the snowballs he'd made right in their faces.
All right! Three direct hits.
Without looking back, Zac ran for the skidoo. But blood was still streaming from his nose. If he didn't stop it, the splashes of red on the snow were going to show the gang exactly which way he'd gone.
Zac fished around in his backpack for a tissue. His mum had given him some.
Zac held the tissue up to his aching nose.
Woahâ¦what a weird feeling,
thought Zac.
The sky went blurry. The snow seemed to swim. He was so sleepy all of a suddenâ¦
Too late, Zac realised what he had done.
He'd used one of his mum's Total Knock-out Tissues, the ones that put you to sleep as soon as you hold them near your nose.
They were supposed to be for enemies!
I'm really in troubleâ¦I've got toâ¦
thought Zac, his eyelids drooping.
Before he could finish that thought, Zac was fast asleep!
Zac opened his eyes sleepily. He yawned loudly and scratched his head all over.
Just another day with nothing much to do,
Zac thought. Might have a bowl of Chocmallow
Puffs for breaky, play a bit of guitarâ¦
Zac looked around. He didn't seem to be in his bed.
That's strangeâ¦Andâ¦oh no! Where are
my PJs?
Instead of being safe at home in his bedroom, Zac was in some kind of laboratory. Somehow, he seemed to be hovering in mid-air. And he was wearing nothing but a pair of metal underpants!
Then Zac remembered what had happened. He'd accidentally knocked himself out with his mum's Total Knock-out Tissues. The evil researchers must have brought him back to the seal research station and locked him up.