Agent Rookie's Secret Mission 8 (9781101610398) Page 2

  “I win,” Protobot says. “The EPF is now under my control.”

  Rookie struggles to get through the net. “I can’t break it!” he yells.

  “I’m sorry,” you say. “I guess we should have tried to free G and the others.”

  THE END

  CONTINUED . . .

  You and Rookie decide to head upstream. The bank of the creek is steep and narrow, so you jump in and swim. The water is cold, but you can move much faster this way.

  You both swim a little bit farther and then waddle out of the freezing water. You climb up the bank to the top of a rocky ridge. Shading your eyes from the sun, you look across the creek and see something gleaming in the sunlight.

  “Rookie, look!” you say.

  There’s definitely something gold and round on the other side of the creek, but it’s hard to see with the sun in your eyes. Then it hops away, into the Forest.

  “Was that the golden puffle?” Rookie asks.

  You shake your head. “Maybe. But we’ll never know for sure.”

  THE END

  CONTINUED . . .

  “The one by the rock is closest,” Rookie says.

  He quickly steers left and then hovers over the vent. A big bubble shoots up, enveloping the Aqua Grabber. Then the bubble lifts the craft up.

  “I think we’re getting away!” you say, looking down at Klepto.

  But neither you nor Rookie is looking up—where a large rock overhang is blocking your path to the surface.

  Bam! The Aqua Grabber bangs into the rock. You hold on tight as the craft shakes violently.

  “Uh-oh,” Rookie says.

  The claw holding the ruby opens up, sending the ruby sinking into the depths below. Klepto skitters right up to it and grabs it with his own claws.

  “We’ve got to follow him!” you yell.

  Rookie steers the Aqua Grabber back down, but Klepto is going deep into the water.

  The water is darker, and it’s hard to follow Klepto, but Rookie stays on him.

  Then . . . whoosh! The Aqua Grabber starts to quickly float to the surface.

  “Rats! We’re out of air!” Rookie says.

  Seconds later, you’re bobbing on top of the water. To your surprise, Jet Pack Guy is standing on the edge of the Iceberg wearing scuba gear.

  “G and I traced the missing ruby to Klepto’s lair,” he says. “Did you find it?”

  “We found it!” Rookie says proudly. “And then we . . . um . . . lost it.”

  Jet Pack Guy shakes his head. “I’ll take it from here,” he says matter-of-factly. Then he dives into the water.

  “Oh well,” Rookie says. “Guess I’m not going to impress Jet Pack Guy today!”

  THE END

  CONTINUED . . .

  “Where should we look first?” Rookie wonders.

  “Well, maybe the trees,” you suggest. “If the golden puffle really can fly, it might be getting away.”

  Rookie springs to attention. “Why didn’t I think of that? Let’s hurry!”

  He races ahead of you, and you have to hurry to keep up. Soon you’re in the middle of the Forest, weaving your way between the trees.

  “It’s kind of hard to see the sky from here,” you point out.

  “No problem!” Rookie says, skidding to a stop. He whips out two pairs of binoculars and hands one to you. “Let’s keep our eyes on the skies!”

  You both continue walking, a little more slowly this time, with your eyes peeled on the treetops. For a long time you see nothing but blue sky, clouds, and green branches. Then, suddenly . . .

  “What’s that?” you ask. Something shiny is glinting in the very top of one of the trees.

  Rookie aims his binoculars at it. “Hmm. I can’t quite make it out. But it is shiny. Maybe it’s the golden puffle! Wouldn’t that be great? Jet Pack Guy will be so impressed with me!”

  “There’s only one way to find out for sure,” you say. “We’ve got to get to the top of that tree. It’s too bad we can’t fly.”

  “Let’s transport to HQ. G might have something that can help us,” Rookie says. He starts typing into his spy phone. “Let me just type in our coordinates, so we can come back to the same spot.”

  When Rookie is done, you use your spy phone to instantly transport to EPF Headquarters. The main Control Room is bustling with Agents from all over the island. Rookie leads you right to the door of G’s lab and uses a security card to let you both in.

  “G? Are you here?” Rookie asks, but there’s no answer.

  “G is Gary the Gadget Guy, right?” you ask.

  Rookie nods. “Gary is famous for inventing some of the coolest things on Club Penguin, like the Pizzatron 3000,” he says. “But EPF Agents know him as G, the EPF Agent who makes cool gadgets for us.”

  You look around the lab. Strange gadgets and inventions of all kinds fill the shelves. The main desk is covered with coffee-stained plans for G’s new creations. A few items are covered with sheets and signs labeled DON’T TOUCH! INVENTION IN PROGRESS!

  “I guess we should wait until G gets back,” you say.

  “But this is urgent!” Rookie says. “If there’s a golden puffle in that tree, we have to get back to it right away. G won’t mind if we borrow something. Let’s look around.”

  You and Rookie split up and start examining the inventions on the shelves.

  “What are we looking for exactly?” you ask.

  “Something that can get us to the top of that tree,” Rookie replies. “Like, a balloon, or a super ladder, or . . .”

  “A Jet Pack for Two?” you ask.

  “That would be great, but there’s no such thing as a Jet Pack for Two,” Rookie says.

  “But there’s one right here.” You’ve found an extra-wide jet pack with two sets of straps. It’s labeled EXPERIMENTAL.

  “Perfect!” Rookie says.

  “Maybe it’s not safe,” you say, pointing to the label.

  “Oh, don’t worry about that,” Rookie says, waving his flipper.

  You’re a little afraid of the jet pack, so you look around some more. Then you find a device called a Penguin Catapult. You read the diagram on the side. It looks like a penguin sits in a basket at the end of the lever. The lever gets pulled back and then . . . whoosh! The penguin goes flying through the air.

  “How about this?” you ask Rookie.

  If you and Rookie borrow the Jet Pack for Two, go here.

  If you and Rookie borrow the Penguin Catapult, go here.

  CONTINUED . . .

  You pick up the apple and throw it as hard as you can at Protobot. A door on the robot’s chest opens up, and he catches the apple.

  “Uh-oh,” Rookie says.

  “What’s wrong?” you ask.

  “Protobot can absorb items he encounters and transform them into weapons,” he tells you. “We may be in trouble.”

  “It was just an apple,” you say. “What could he do with an apple?”

  Protobot’s eyes glow, his body shakes, and seconds later . . . wham! A wave of sticky applesauce shoots from his arm, slamming into you and Rookie. The blast sends you both sliding across the floor.

  “You cannot defeat me,” Protobot says, and then he rolls down the hall toward the EPF mainframe.

  “Stop Protobot!” Jet Pack Guy yells from the cage.

  You and Rookie get to your feet and try to run to Protobot—but you slip in the applesauce again. By the time you get up, Protobot is rolling away from the mainframe.

  “Mainframe breached. Location found. Mission complete,” the robot says, and then he crashes through a wall, escaping.

  “Hurry!” Jet Pack Guy yells.

  You get back on your feet once more and slowly and carefully make your
way to the cage. You reach out to open the door, but G stops you.

  “Don’t! You’ll be electrified,” G says. He nods to Rookie. “Pull that red lever on the far wall. That should negate the cage’s electric charge.”

  “Sure thing, boss,” Rookie says and swiftly obeys. The cage stops producing an electric charge, and Jet Pack Guy jimmies the lock, freeing himself as well as Dot and G.

  “Thanks,” he says, nodding to you and Rookie. Then he turns to G. “I’m on this one. Don’t worry, I’ll stop him.”

  “There is no need for that,” says G, a blue penguin wearing round eyeglasses and a white lab coat.

  “What do you mean?” Jet Pack Guy asks. “Protobot is going to steal all of the island’s coins if we don’t catch him!”

  “But he will not find it,” G explains. “The location of the coins is top secret—so secret that it is not even stored in the mainframe. The location that I programmed into the mainframe is just a decoy.”

  “That’s awesome!” Rookie cheers. “So where is Protobot headed?”

  “To a remote cave deep in the mountains,” G says, “where he will find sacks and sacks of . . . seashells.”

  Rookie wipes off some applesauce from his front. “I wish I could see his face when that happens,” he says. “You know what I would say?”

  “What?” you ask.

  Rookie grins. “How do you like those apples, Protobot?”

  THE END

  CONTINUED . . .

  You and Rookie decide to head downstream. The Jet Pack for Two is floating on top of the creek, so you jump in the water and ride it like a raft down the creek. After a few minutes, the surrounding trees begin to look familiar.

  Soon you reach the Cove and climb out. Then you and Rookie transport back to HQ.

  This time, you find G, a blue penguin wearing round glasses and a white lab coat, waiting for you. “I see you’ve been testing my Jet Pack for Two,” G says.

  “Sorry, G,” Rookie says. “We crashed it.”

  “No need to apologize,” G said. “I’ve been looking for an Agent to test this out. Excellent job!”

  Rookie turns to you and grins. “All right! G is impressed. Now I know that I’ll impress Jet Pack Guy one day.”

  THE END

  CONTINUED . . .

  On the way to the Beach, you and Rookie waddle past the Dock. Blue waves lap against the snowy shore, and the Hydro-Hopper bobs on the water, waiting for a penguin looking to ride the waves.

  Rookie stops.

  “Let’s look here,” he suggests. “Where there’s water, there are crabs.”

  “Good idea,” you agree, and you and Rookie comb the snow for crab tracks. But the snow is smooth and clean. There’s no sign of tracks—or the ruby.

  “Nothing here,” Rookie says. “Let’s move on to the Beach.”

  Then a slight breeze kicks up, and a piece of paper flutters past Rookie’s beak.

  “A clue!” Rookie cries, and he goes running after it.

  You think it’s probably a stray piece of litter, but you know by now that you can’t stop Rookie once he gets an idea in his head. He chases the paper across the snowy meadow until he’s able to jump up and catch it.

  “Got it!” he cries, somersaulting in the snow as he lands. He reads it to himself and then waves you over. “Get a load of this!”

  You quickly waddle to his side and read the paper.

  IT’S ALL HAPPENING AT CPT 10:00 AT THE PLACE WHERE MUSIC RULES.

  “This is clearly a message from Herbert P. Bear,” he says.

  “You mentioned Herbert before,” you say. “What’s his deal again?”

  “He’s a total villain,” Rookie tells you. “Ever since he came to Club Penguin, he’s been cooking up evil plots. He’s caused earthquakes and avalanches, and once he almost sank the island!”

  “Oh, yeah, I remember reading about him,” you say. “Do you really think this is a message from him? It kind of looks like a flyer for a music concert.”

  Rookie checks his watch. “I’ve seen Herbert’s messages before, and this one has his paws all over it,” he says firmly. “We can look for the ruby later. Right now, we need to stop Herbert. It’s almost ten o’clock. We just need to decipher the message. Where is a place where music rules?”

  You’re thoughtful. “Well, the Night Club, of course. But there’s also a music stage at the Lighthouse. I saw a band play there once.”

  If you go to the Night Club, go here.

  If you go to the Lighthouse, go here.

  CONTINUED . . .

  Protobot rolls past your hiding place.

  “Rookie, try that button!” you urge. “We’ve got to stop him!”

  “Right!” Rookie agrees. He presses a button on the control panel, and the room becomes dark.

  “What happened?” you ask.

  “I don’t know,” Rookie replies anxiously. “I think I pressed the wrong button. Instead of locking the control room, I turned out the lights!”

  “Try another button!” you suggest.

  “I can’t see!” Rookie wails.

  You hear him trying a bunch of different buttons. An alarm sounds. The fire sprinklers go off, dousing you with water. Finally, the lights go back on.

  “Got it!” Rookie says. He climbs out from under the table, and you follow him. “You’re trapped, Protobot!”

  But Protobot is nowhere in sight. He’s escaped!

  The sounds of cannons stop, and Jet Pack Guy, Dot, and G come running toward you.

  “Where is he?” Jet Pack Guy asks.

  “He got away,” Rookie replies.

  Jet Pack Guy shakes his head. “Typical. Dot, let’s go see if we can track that bot.”

  Jet Pack Guy and Dot leave. Rookie sadly hangs his head. “Sorry, G.”

  “No need to be sorry,” G says. “When you short-circuited Protobot, you deleted his mission to steal the island’s coins. You also freed me and the other agents. I’d say you’ve done really well, Rookie.”

  Rookie beams. “Really, G? Thanks!”

  “I’m sorry you didn’t impress Jet Pack Guy,” you say.

  “Just wait!” Rookie says confidently. “Now that G says I did a good job, I feel like I can do anything!”

  THE END

  CONTINUED . . .

  “The hole is right here,” you say. “Let’s check it out.”

  “Sounds good to me!” Rookie says. “I’ll go first!”

  Rookie shimmies down the hole, and you follow him in. After you go a few feet, you drop down into what looks like some kind of tunnel. There’s just enough sunlight coming through the hole that you can still see.

  “What is this place?” you ask.

  “I’m not sure,” Rookie says. “Maybe it’s where the real golden puffle lives! Wouldn’t that be cool?”

  “Let’s look around,” you say.

  Rookie takes out a flashlight. “This should help.”

  You both slowly make your way down the tunnel, which leads to a door. You open it and enter a large room. Rookie’s flashlight illuminates a big lever on one of the walls.

  “Hmm,” Rookie says, pulling the lever. “Maybe it leads to the entrance of the puffle lair.”

  Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! A barrage of snowballs flies out of the wall, nearly hitting you and Rookie! You both quickly dodge the snowballs and run farther into the room.

  “Whoa!” you cry, steadying yourself. Something on the floor has tripped you up. You look down and see that you’ve stepped into a cardboard box.

  “Rookie, wait up!” you yell. You kick off the box and catch up with your new friend.

  Rookie is shining his flashlight into a corner of the room. Two glowing green eyes shine from the darkness.
>
  “Wh-what’s that?” you ask nervously.

  “Don’t move,” Rookie whispers. He shines the flashlight from side to side—revealing a huge green crocodile!

  “Scratch that,” Rookie says. “Run!”

  The two of you run as fast as you can in the opposite direction—and run smack into a wall. Rookie’s flashlight illuminates two doors, one next to the other.

  “What is this place?” you ask.

  “I have a theory,” Rookie says. “The snowball trap, the crocodile—it’s just like the lost world in Quest for the Golden Puffle! I think we’ve stumbled into another dimension. Part of the box dimension, maybe.”

  Your eyes get wide. “If that’s true, then maybe the real golden puffle does live here.”

  Rookie nods. “It might be waiting for us behind one of these doors. But which one?”

  If you open the door on the right, go here.

  If you open the door on the left, go here.

  CONTINUED . . .

  You and Rookie decide to go to the Stage and waddle to the Plaza. The name of the play on the marquee is Ruby and the Ruby.

  When you enter, you see that the stage is decorated to look like an old black-and-white movie. Several penguins are milling around in vintage suits and gowns, and you guess that they’re actors in the play. But one penguin looks out of place. She’s a crisp-looking penguin with short blond hair and a denim jacket over a blue shirt. She smiles when she sees Rookie.

  “Rookie, glad you’re here,” she says matter-of-factly.

  “Um, thanks,” Rookie says. Then he looks at you. “This is Dot, the stealth expert for the EPF.”

  “Wow, it’s an honor to meet you,” you say.

  “Thanks!” she replies warmly, and then she’s all business. “So, you got here fast, Rookie. I just called G a few seconds ago.”

  “No, I—” Rookie begins, but you nudge him.

  “This might be your chance to do something impressive,” you whisper, and Rookie nods.