H.I. Larry - Zac Cracks Down

ZAC CRACKS DOWNBY H. I. LARRYILLUSTRATIONS BY CAL BENNETT &
RON MONNIERZac Cracks Down
published in 2010 by
Hardie Grant Egmont
85 High Street
Prahran, Victoria 3181, Australia
www.hardiegrantegmont.com.au
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means without the prior permission of the publishers and copyright owner. A CiP record for this title is available from the National Library of Australia Text, illustration and design copyright 2010 Hardie Grant Egmont
Designed and typeset by Ron Monnier
Illustrated by Cal Bennett and Ron Monnier
Logo design by Stephanie Spartels Printed in Australia by McPhersons Printing Group 1 3 5 7 9 10 8 6 4 2 TABLE OF CONTENTS Zac Power was in music class. Everyone was playing different instruments.

Zac was playing the drum kit. Zac was 12 years old. He was a spy. His code name was Agent Rock Star. Zac worked for GIB. They were a good spy group.

GIB stopped the bad spy group BIG from doing bad things. Zac sometimes went to Spy Camp. He learnt cool skills like how to rock-climb. OK class, lets start, said Zacs teacher. Zac picked up the drum-sticks. Zac stepped on the bass drum pedal. Zac stepped on the bass drum pedal.

The skin of the drum opened up. Zac checked that no-one was looking. Then he dived inside the drum. Zac was sliding down a tunnel. Zac flew out of the tunnel and landed on a crash mat. He looked around.

He was at Spy Camp. It was in a huge silver dome. There was a giant TV screen hanging from the roof. It showed the latest Spy Ladder results. GIB spies got points for going on missions and to Spy Camp. The spy with the most points went to the top of the Spy Ladder.

This week Zac was number one. 1.AGENT ROCK STAR2.AGENT DUCK FEET3.AGENT PIZZA BREATH4.AGENT BUTTER FINGERSSPY LADDER Coming through! yelled a voice from inside the tunnel. Another spy flew onto the mat. Alex? said Zac. Hi, Zac! said Alex. Alex was one of Zacs best mates.

His code name was Agent Pizza Breath. They didnt go to the same school. But they liked to hang out at Spy Camp. Lets get our Info-Disks, said Alex. Info-Disks told spies what they would be doing at Spy Camp. Zac and Alex picked up their Info-Disks from the front desk.

Zac put his Info-Disk into his SpyPad. SpyPads were like a computer and a phone. They also did cool things like play music and games. A message came up on Zacs SpyPad. TOP SECRET
FOR AGENT ROCK STAR'S EYES ONLY Spy Camp Skill
Code Cracking Training Buddy
Agent Pizza Breath Training Place
Bladesville City Market
END Cool, were training buddies! said Zac. Zac and Alex found the Code Cracking room.

This was where their code cracking gear was stored. They scanned the lock with their SpyPads. The door opened. Check these out, said Zac, picking up two gadget boxes. Zac read the label. Sense Sharpener
Helps you see, hear, smell,
touch and taste things better Zac put on his Sense Sharpeners.

The control pad was on the back of his glove. He pressed the HEAR button. Alex was looking at their vehicle. This is a Go-Low, said Alex. His voice boomed through Zacs ears. Zac turned HEAR off straight away.

Ive driven a Go-Low before, said Alex. Theyre so low, you can drive underneath other cars! Cool, said Zac. He opened a roller door at the back of the room. The boys climbed into the Go-Low. They had to lie down inside. Hold on tight, said Alex as he started the engine.

Then they sped away. Zac and Alex zoomed towards Bladesville. Zac had been there lots of times before. It was a big, dirty city. Guess what, Zac? said Alex. Im at number three on the Spy Ladder.

Awesome! said Zac. Zac and Alex drove into the city. There were traffic jams everywhere. People were tooting their horns and yelling. But Zac and Alexs Go-Low dodged under other cars. They were super-fast.

Zac and Alex got to the market. Agent Morse was waiting for them. He was an expert in cracking codes. Welcome, agents, said Agent Morse. Today youll learn how to crack codes. Then youll be tested.

But first, hand in your SpyPads. Our SpyPads? said Zac. SpyPads can crack codes, said Agent Morse. You need to practise solving problems in your head. Oh no, said Alex. I feel nude without my SpyPad.

But they handed their SpyPads over. Agent Morse took Zac and Alex through the market. It was very noisy. People were selling food and clothes and toys. They stopped outside a busy stall. See anything interesting? asked Agent Morse. See anything interesting? asked Agent Morse.

Alex shrugged. Zac looked closer at the sign. It had dots and dashes on the border. Its Morse Code, said Zac. The dots and dashes make up letters. It says video games testing lab! Cool! Can we go inside? asked Alex.