Jack’s head started to spin. How and why was Marko Mayer on Everest? Maybe there was some funny gas in the net that was causing him to hallucinate. Or maybe he was suffering from altitude sickness. But the fact that he felt fine told him that his brain wasn’t going soft. Did this mean that Marko was an agent like Jack, but for the bad guys?
‘I told you I was a better climber than you!’ Marko shouted down to Jack. The man beside Marko said something to him. He seemed to be telling Marko to focus on what he was doing.
‘You’re nothing but a has-been!’ Marko went on. ‘You used to be a better climber than me, but now look at me! I’ve nearly reached the top of the world!’
The other man was motioning for the boy to be quiet.
Marko ignored him. ‘The last thing you’re going to see of me,’ he yelled, ‘is my butt as I climb over to the other side.’
At that comment, Jack felt furious. He didn’t know how and when Marko had joined the Russians. Frankly, he had no idea why they’d chosen such an annoying boy. All Jack wanted to do was rip him off the ice and wipe that silly grin off his face.
Just then, he heard a noise. It was coming from above. The ice above Marko was starting to crack.
The boy and his companions were panicking. Quickly, they began to climb down. Jack was feeling worried too. He was trapped directly under the wall of ice. If a sheet of it fell off, he’d be seriously injured – or worse. Racing to the edge of the net, Jack yanked it as hard as he could. But it wouldn’t budge. There was no way he was getting out without help.
Jack’s mind raced through the list of gadgets in his Book Bag. The Rock Corer could cut a hole in the ice and create a tunnel to the other side. But it could take hours. His Melting Ink Pen was attached to his Watch Phone. But that took a while to work too. This was an emergency.
Then Jack remembered his Laser Burst – a hand-held device that could slice through anything – and fast. As he pulled it out of his Book Bag, he noticed that Marko and the two men had made it down the Lhotse Face. They walked past Jack, leaving him for dead.
CRACK!
The piece of ice above Jack split away. It was heading straight for him! He swiped his Laser Burst through the net and dived through the hole just as the giant slab crashed to the ground where he’d been standing.
KABOOM!
The ground shook.
The massive chunk of ice split into pieces that tumbled towards Jack. He tried to get up and run, but there was no such thing as running on Mount Everest. It was like being on the moon. Everything happened in slow motion.
The most Jack could manage was to take a step. One of the pieces of ice caught him on the leg, pinning him down. He tried to lift it off, but it was way too heavy.
When Marko and the others saw Jack’s predicament, they came over and laughed at him. One of the men ripped Jack’s Book Bag off his back. The other took the Oxygen Exchanger out of his mouth. Almost immediately, Jack started to gasp.
‘You won’t be needing these any more,’ said the man. ‘Plus, we don’t want you coming after us.’
Marko and his companions turned and headed towards the Western Cwm. They were going to escape by way of the southern route now. Maybe, Jack thought, they’d changed their minds after seeing that falling ice on the Lhotse Face.
The man who’d taken Jack’s Book Bag tossed it into the snow. The other one threw away his Oxygen Exchanger. Jack figured it was to lighten their load.
Jack was really struggling now. Without oxygen, his brain was turning fuzzy. His body hadn’t had a chance to get used to the height, because the Oxygen Exchanger had done it for him. Desperately, he looked around for something – anything – that could set him free. He spotted his Laser Burst poking out of the snow. He had dropped it when he jumped through the net, and now it was out of reach.
However, there was a powerful magnet on Jack’s Watch Phone. He tapped a few buttons and activated the Magnetic Pull. As he placed his wrist on the snow, it started to vibrate. The Laser Burst flew towards his wrist and stuck to the face of the Watch Phone.
Grabbing the gadget with his other hand, Jack sent a powerful beam from the Laser Burst towards the ice. The heat from the laser started to melt it. It took a while, but eventually Jack was able to set himself free.
Relieved, he stood up, but soon collapsed to the ground. His body was disoriented; it was starting to malfunction. He saw that his Oxygen Exchanger lay not too far away. If Jack could get to it, it would save his life.
Dragging himself along on his elbows, Jack inched his way over to his Oxygen Exchanger. When he reached it, he strapped it to his mouth and drank in all the mist he could get. Once he started to feel better, he decided it was time to follow Marko and the others.
Jack used his Snow Shades to zero in on the crooks. By now, they were nearing the lower portion of the Western Cwm. As far as they knew, Jack was the only agent after them. And they thought he was trapped at the Lhotse Face.
Jack called Mr Bell, who patched him through to Scarlet and Storm. They were about to cross the ladder over the crevasse at the foot of the Western Cwm. Jack told them to hold off and wait. He had a plan to catch the crooks. If all went as he hoped, then Jack could finally nab Marko and show him who was boss.