Rocky Road Read Free Page A

the message? What did they have to do with a SHINE Mission? Did they have something to do with the SHADOW agency? Surely not, thought EJ as she moved on to the next set of numbers.

    Concept? Could that be right? It didn’t feel right. Could it be another word? EJ pressed the predictive text for more options. That’s better, she thought when she saw the next option appear.

    EJ quickly keyed in the remaining number sets then wrote the decoded message under the code.

    EJ looked at the now decoded message but could hardly believe what she was reading. The Pink Shadows concert? Is this really an intercepted message from SHADOW? thought EJ. EJ looked at the message again. It was not like any message she had ever decoded before. It was more like a message that a friend would send to another friend. Had SHINE made a mistake? wondered EJ.
    EJ was still trying to work out what the message might mean as she rolled up the paper with the decoded message, put it back in the capsule and then slipped the capsule up the tube. There was a whoosh as the capsule was sucked up and away towards SHINE HQ where the head of SHINE, A1, would be waiting for it—and for EJ12. Perhaps with A1’s help she would be able to work out what the message meant. EJ hoped so.



EJ had re-entered the Mission Tube and, after a short trip, arrived at her next stop. Large metal doors slid apart and EJ walked into the Operations Room of SHINE HQ. EJ was pleased to see that things were back to normal with lights on and computer screens flashing. It wasn’t so long ago that SHINE’ s energy supplies had been attacked by SHADOW. SHINE had been reduced to using emergency lighting and candles. It was, as she proudly remembered, EJ who had worked out what SHADOW was doing and stopped them from blacking out SHINE permanently.
    â€˜Hello again EJ12,’ said A1, ‘welcome back. I hope you had a nice trip. Did you enjoy our new in-tube music?’
    A1 was the head of the SHINE agency and she was responsible for briefing agents for their missions. A1 was, as always, wearing a smart black suit with a white shirt and a long silver chain with a beautiful, almost glowing, yellow pendant. A1’s long white hair was swooped up in a rather messy bun held with a tortoiseshell comb at the back. There could be all sorts of things sticking out of the bun, but, today, EJ noticed, there was just a pencil.
    â€˜As you can see, EJ, we are back to normal and have full power again but we have introduced some energy-saving devices as a result of that last mishap. Remember one of our favourite mottoes, “If you get lemons, you can make lemonade”; there is always something good that can come from bad things.’
    EJ nodded, wondering if there was anything that SHINE did not have a motto for.
    â€˜We have a motto for most things, EJ12,’ said A1 who always seemed to know what EJ was thinking,which was a bit disconcerting. ‘Do you know,’ she continued, ‘that this is one of the first SHADOW messages that we have intercepted in quite some time? We simply have not been able to find them. They could be planning something big and we don’t know anything. But now, thank goodness, we have this message. We had been keeping an eye on a particular SHADOW agent and managed to intercept the message from SHADOW that was sent to her phone. We made a copy of the message before sending it on to the agent. She shouldn’t suspect anything and SHADOW won’t know that we might be on to them. Now, let’s look at that message.’ A1 turned towards the screen. ‘Light Screen, lower. Show message.’
    On A1’s command, an enormous screen came down from the ceiling. It was the Light Screen, a giant, voice-activated plasma screen that accessed the Internet, all SHINE’ s classified files, radio and television channels and GPS technology too. You could also use it as a touch screen and move pictures around, grouping