Star League 7 (5 page)

‘Don't let them get away!' yells Jay. ‘Get their crystals!'

As the Shadow Six activate their Shadow Shards, we each make a grab for them. My arm snakes out and grabs onto Vlad's black crystal clasp just as he starts to teleport to safety. A feeling like an electric current travels up my arm.

‘Let go!' Vlad snarls. I shake my head and hold on tight. A light surrounds us that glows brighter and brighter until I have to close my eyes. At the very last second Vlad forces the Shadow Shard from my grip and I'm plunged into darkness.

Immediately I know I'm not at GALACTIC HQ any more. The temperature has plummeted to freezing point, causing me to shiver uncontrollably.

‘Hello?' I ask, my teeth chattering. ‘Anyone here?'

A light blinks on and I realise that Sam is here too. His torch-eyes cut through the darkness, revealing that we're in some kind of cave. There are four more flashes of light and we're joined by Jay, Connor, Roger and Leigh.

‘What just happened?' asks Jay, scratching his head.

‘The last thing I remember was grabbing for Greta's Shadow Shard,' says Connor.

‘We must have been teleported by the power of the shards while the Shadow Six were trying to escape.' I say. We look around but there's no sign of our enemies. ‘I wonder where we've been transported to?'

Roger walks over and grabs a handful of snow from the floor of the cave. ‘We're definitely not in Kansas any more, or home for that matter. It was summer when we left.'

Jay clicks his fingers. ‘Wait! I know where we
are – think about it! What were the three places Ridley said might have been the professor's hiding place? A jungle village, a desert laboratory or …'

‘An icy mountain stronghold!' I exclaim. ‘The Shadow Six must have been trying to teleport back to Professor Pestilence's hideout!'

‘And they accidentally brought us with them,' says Connor with a grin.

‘I do not wish to alarm anyone,' interrupts Sam, ‘but my circuits will stop functioning if they are continuously exposed to these temperatures.' He's started to frost over.

‘Sam's not the only one who needs to get out of the cold,' says Leigh. Chu shivers around her neck like some kind of monkey scarf. ‘We should work on finding the hideout before we freeze to death!'

‘We can't just burst out of here,' warns Jay. ‘If this is the professor's hideout there will be guards around. We'll need to do some scouting first.'

Roger looks down at his shorts and Hawaiian
shirt. ‘I'm not exactly dressed for snow exploration. I wish I'd packed a change of clothes!'

What Roger said gives me an idea. ‘Wait! That's it!' I take off my ninja uniform until I'm standing in my regular clothes underneath. ‘You five might not be dressed for the snow, but a ninja always comes prepared.' I pull my suit inside out to reveal the white reversible lining, then I slip it back on.

‘You've got a snow ninja uniform too?' asks Connor, clearly impressed.

‘Of course,' I say. ‘I don't just wear black all the time. Even I like a bit of colour in my wardrobe!'

Sam clears his throat. ‘Actually, Asuka, white isn't technically a colour, it is a …'

‘I'll go on ahead,' I say, cutting Sam off. ‘Nobody will see me and I can come back and warn you if we run into any obstacles.'

I slip my white hood over my head and run out into the snow, ready to find Professor Pestilence and make him pay.

We follow at a distance behind Asuka as she scouts ahead. She's practically invisible creeping through the powdery whiteness in search of Professor Pestilence's secret hideout.

‘I hope we find this place soon,' chatters Chu in my ear. ‘And I really hope that Professor Pestilence has invested in some decent heaters!'

‘I don't know why you're complaining,' I tell him. ‘At least you're wearing a fur coat!'

Asuka pauses up ahead. She watches something that the rest of us can't see, then moves stealthily back to us.

‘What did you find?' asks Jay.

Asuka pulls back her hood and her eyes are wide.

‘It's a huge castle. It's hidden between two
mountains, so anyone who was randomly hiking would probably miss it.'

‘Well, if it's hidden then it's got to be the hideout, right?' asks Connor. ‘Let's go kick our way in through the front door and show Professor Pestilence that he can't push us around!'

Asuka shakes her head. ‘It's not that easy. There are about a hundred guards at the front gate. Too many for us to take on, and security is too tight for us to just sneak past.'

I'm distracted as Chu starts going crazy on my shoulder, sniffing the air.

‘Is Chu okay?' asks Jay. I nod as I figure out what he's smelling.

‘I think I might know a way we can go in through the front door after all,' I say with a grin. ‘Come on!'

We creep closer to the castle, taking care to stay hidden from the guards.

‘How many can you smell?' I ask Chu, who has
a much better sense of smell than I do.

‘Lots,' he answers. ‘Probably fifty or so.'

‘What are you two talking about?' asks Sam.

I point to the castle. ‘Professor Pestilence's guards don't just come in human form. Look!'

As we watch I catch a glimpse of movement through the snow. The white fur with black spots is so perfectly camouflaged that at first it seems like a snow drift. But thanks to Chu's nose, I know better.

‘Snow leopards,' I explain. ‘The Professor has trained them to guard his castle, and if I can talk them into helping us, we'll be able to walk right in!'

I close my eyes and make a psychic link with the leopard on patrol. I greet him politely and ask to speak with his leader. A minute later a huge black-and-white leopard pads through the castle gates towards us, his pale green eyes flashing.

‘I am Loki, the leader of the snow leopards. Why are you here, human? Tell us why we shouldn't tear you to shreds!' His face is scarred
from many fights, and I have no doubt that he'll attack us if I can't convince him to help.

I take a deep breath and decide to go with the bold approach. ‘Look at you, Loki! How pathetic you are!'

Loki growls. ‘What? How dare you!'

But I don't back down. ‘It's true. Why are you taking orders from a human? Don't you know that Professor Pestilence is evil?'

Loki stops growling and looks ashamed. ‘We have no choice,' he tells me. ‘The one you call Professor Pestilence has minions who wield powerful objects.'

‘The Shadow Shards?' I ask, and Loki nods.

‘If we do not do as he says, they threaten to use them against us. I am simply doing what is best for my kind.'

‘Well, we're here to defeat them all. With Professor Pestilence out of the way you'll be free, but we need your help. What do you say?'

Loki stares at the castle for a long time. For a moment I think I've made a mistake, and the snow leopards won't help us after all. Then he turns back to me, his eyes hard.

‘What do you need us to do, human?'

We follow the snow leopards as they rush towards the guards on duty. Most of the guards throw down their weapons and run at the sight of the leopards turning on them, and the few who remain follow the others once they see us and our powers.

As soon as the guards are gone we try the front gate, but it's locked tight. There's an electronic lock on it unlike anything I've ever seen before.

‘Can you crack it, Sam?' asks Jay.

I bite my lip. ‘I'm not sure,' I tell him. ‘But I'll give it my best shot.'

I close my eyes and connect the wiring in my hand to the lock panel. I rearrange the circuits, shifting them into place in a way that I think will unlock it.

‘Access denied,' drones an electronic voice.

‘That's okay, Sam, try again,' says Asuka.

I nod and try another combination of circuits.

‘Access denied,' says the voice again. ‘Last attempt before lasers are activated.'

‘Uh oh,' I mutter to myself. My circuits fizz, knowing that if I mess this up it could spell the end of our rescue mission. I take a moment to steady my central processing unit and try again. I concentrate more than I ever have in my life. I slot the connections into place, and eventually I hear a beeping sound.

‘Access granted. Gates opening,' the voice says.

I let out a huge sigh.

The main gateway opens out onto a square so large it seems like a city.

‘This place is huge!' gasps Connor.

‘Ten square kilometres by my estimate,' I say, scanning the area. ‘It will take us approximately eighteen hours, twenty-six minutes and three
seconds to scour the whole place.'

‘We don't have that long,' says Jay. ‘Anyone got any ideas?'

I spot something. ‘Up there!' I point and everyone turns to look.

‘A satellite dish?' asks Leigh.

I nod. ‘That must be how the professor sends his messages in and out of the castle. If we can get that down I might be able to pinpoint his exact whereabouts.'

Asuka climbs the wall and rips the small dish right off the roof. She throws it down to me and I search the underside of the dish until I find what I'm looking for – a data storage chip that contains all the messages the professor has sent from the stronghold. I pop the chip out and insert it into my wrist.

I select a file that, according to the time code, was sent out less than a minute ago. It's a video transmission from Professor Pestilence, who's
wearing a mask over his face. My eyes dart around the image of the room the professor is recording from and finally I spot what I'm looking for. Behind him is a window, but not just any window.

‘We need to look for a stained-glass window in the shape of a volcano!' I tell the others. ‘If we find that, we'll find the professor!'

We immediately run around the castle, looking for the window I described. There are plenty of stained-glass windows, but none in the shape of a volcano. It's like playing hide and seek, only this game isn't as much fun. I know the longer Professor Pestilence holds Ben hostage, the less likely it is we'll find him safe and sound.

Finally, just as I'm about to give up, I glance up and there it is. ‘I've found it!' I tell the others. We crowd around and peer up. The window is at the top of a tower so tall my neck aches as I look up at it. It's wide, too, and seems like it's built out of solid, impenetrable stone. I can't see any doors at
the base of the tower, or any other way that we'll be able to get in.

‘How on earth are we going to get up there?' I ask.

Roger grins and steps forward. ‘Leave it to me!'