The Medusa Curse Read online

  Published by Scholastic Australia

  Pty Ltd PO Box 579 Gosford NSW 2250

  ABN 11 000 614 577

  www.scholastic.com.au

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  Sydney • Auckland • New York • Toronto • London • Mexico City

  • New Delhi • Hong Kong • Buenos Aires • Puerto Rico

  First edition published by Scholastic Australia Pty Limited, 2018.

  This electronic edition published by Scholastic Australia Pty Limited, 2018.

  E-PUB/MOBI eISBN: 978-1-76027-250-0

  Text © Gabrielle Lord 2018.

  Illustration and design copyright © Scholastic Australia, 2018.

  Additional illustrations: binary © istockphoto.com/loops7; broken glass © istockphoto.com/Heiko Küverling; Building icon © istockphoto.com/Lyudmila_K; Carpeted floor © PhotographyByMK/shutterstock.com; Casino chips © GraphicsRF/shutterstock.com; classical head © istockphoto.com/manx_in_the_world; Close carpet © Matthew Kay | Dreamstime.com; damage © istockphoto.com/gunnarAssmy; Dried seaweed © Torsakarin | Dreamstime.com; glass fragments © istockphoto.com/tommytucker7182; globe © istockphoto.com/imaginima; golf green © istockphoto.com/cscredon; Identification badge © istockphoto.com/plherrera; Medusa © Davide Catoni/shutterstock.com; Medusa © Tame69/shutterstock.com; Office shelf © Elena Molodavkina | Dreamstime.com; Sand scattering © Anton Starikov | Dreamstime.com; sillhouettes Created by Kjpargeter - Freepik.com; sphere © istockphoto.com/Paffy69; Statue of Pan © Kellydbrown | Dreamstime.com; Television reporter © Ratz Attila | Dreamstime.com; Trident icon © Vectorcarrot/shutterstock.com; Wood tile © 10 FACE/shutterstock.com; Workshop bench © Kitchner Bain | Dreamstime.com; Young man © Lenanet | Dreamstime.com

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, storage in an information retrieval system, or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the publisher, unless specifically permitted under the Australian Copyright Act 1968 as amended.

  THE EXHIBITION

  The skull’s hollow eye sockets seemed to stare up at Jazmine Mandell as she examined the figure lying in front of her. While she couldn’t guess the time of death precisely, it was clear the body had been there for some time.

  Jazz, an amateur detective, loved investigating crime scenes, but this one had her stumped. She tucked a strand of long blonde hair behind her ear. ‘Can you tell anything from the X-ray?’

  Across the room, Phoenix Lyons looked up from where he was examining a scan of the victim’s head, swiping his floppy dark fringe back from his grey eyes. ‘Yep,’ he replied. He pointed to a fracture on the left side of the skull. ‘You can see a jagged-edged hole just here. That indicates a fatal blow.’ He walked back to Jazz’s side and stood looking down at the bandaged body. ‘No doubt about it, this is a murder case.’

  Jazz looked at the mummy resting in the decorative coffin in the Antiquities wing of the Knowledge Institute, the museum owned by her friend Mackenzie Zhang’s dad. ‘Shame we’re about 2500 years too late to investigate this case!’ Jazz laughed. ‘We’re not going to be able to find out anything about this mummy that archaeologists haven’t already.’

  ‘Come on,’ said Phoenix. ‘We’d better get back to Anika.’

  Jazz and Phoenix left the marble-columned room and headed for the Velocity wing, using their staff passes to take a short cut through the security office.

  Hurrying around a corner, Jazz and Phoenix nearly ran into a person coming the other way. As Jazz stepped back to avoid a collision she bumped into a small marble figure of the Greek god Pan. The statue was surprisingly light. Steadying it just in time, she turned to see one of the museum’s security staff glaring at her.

  ‘What are you two doing?’ he demanded. ‘You’re not allowed in here.’

  ‘You’re the one who wasn’t looking where he was going,’ argued Phoenix, waving his access card in the guard’s direction. ‘We are allowed to be here. Dr Zhang organised staff passes for us. We’re helping to set up the new exhibition.’

  ‘Is that right?’ said the guard. He had more hair in his eyebrows than on his head, and right now they were drawn together in a scowl. ‘Last I checked that was in the Velocity wing. Thaddaway,’ he said, pointing at the doors to the lobby.

  ‘Hey, look—’ started Phoenix before Jazz pulled on his arm.

  ‘We’re very sorry—’ she checked the guard’s badge, ‘—Sammy. We’re on our way back there now.’ She ushered Phoenix through the swing doors to the lobby.

  There they found Anika. She had taken a break from unpacking artefacts in the Velocity wing to wait for their takeaway dinner delivery. Her rich brown hair was twisted up on the top of her head and her fit runners’ body was concealed behind a brochure stand next to an information desk. She was peering around the stand and out the window towards the visitor car park. Beside her, a steaming bag of fish and chips sent up delicious aromas. When she saw Jazz and Phoenix she motioned them to come over.

  ‘What are you doing?’ Jazz asked.

  ‘I’m watching that car,’ said Anika, pointing out a blue van. Jazz and Phoenix looked at her quizzically. Anika went on, sounding a little on edge. ‘It pulled up while I was waiting for the takeaway. But no-one got out. It’s just stayed there, parked out front, waiting.’

  ‘So? Maybe it belongs to someone who really loves the museum,’ said Phoenix.

  ‘But the museum’s closed. It’s Friday night!’

  Jazz instinctively looked to the number plate. But the lights in the car park weren’t bright enough for her to see it clearly. ‘Maybe it’s waiting for a staff member,’ she offered. ‘There were lots of people here earlier, helping to set up the exhibition.’

  ‘But staff have their own car park,’ said Anika, holding up a brochure that showed a map of the museum. The staff car park was on the other side of the building.

  ‘Maybe they’re hoping to break in and steal our fish and chips!’ said Phoenix impatiently. ‘I’m starting to think you’re even more obsessed with seeing crimes everywhere than Jazz is!’

  ‘You can’t really blame me, can you?’ Anika cried.

  Phoenix looked abashed. Just a few months ago, Anika had been kidnapped from her own bedroom by a crazed killer. The kidnapper had demanded a ransom and threatened to harm Anika if her parents contacted the police. So Jazz, a true crime buff, and Phoenix, a forensic assistant, had teamed up to investigate. They managed to solve the crime and rescue Anika, but it had been a near thing.

  ‘You’re right. I’m sorry,’ said Phoenix. ‘But that food smells so good. My stomach is growling.’

  Anika and Jazz leaned in, and sure enough they heard a rumbling sound. They cracked up.

  ‘OK, I’m convinced! Let’s eat this and then go finish up in the Velocity wing,’ Anika said. She opened the bag and the friends started eating, the mysterious van forgotten.

  SAPPHIRE AND MEDUSA

  The Velocity wing was new. Building it had been a huge investment by Mack’s dad, Dr Zhang. But the massive risk had produced an architectural triumph. The wing was made up of a long gallery of glass and steel. Triangular wooden panels formed a floating ceiling at the entry from the lobby. At intervals, flowing steel sculptures doubled as powered alcoves to house technological displays ranging from 3D models of future cityscapes to robots and self-driving cars. Three of the wing’s four walls were completely made of glass. The glass was designed to appear opaque from outside the building, but from the inside it was transparent, almost invisible, giving guests a full view of landscaped gardens sloping down to the road below.

  Because of the stunning new wing, Dr Zhang had scored a major coup. Sir
Robert Grimshaw, the billionaire scientist and art lover, had chosen the Knowledge Institute for the world premiere of his exhibition, titled ‘From Ancient Times to Future Worlds’. On display would be beautiful antiquities, including a statue from ancient Greece known as the Grimshaw Medusa, which would leave the Grimshaw estate for the first time in over two hundred years. Along with the Medusa would be Sir Robert’s contribution to the ‘future’ part of the exhibition—Sapphire, the world’s first crystalline quantum supercomputer. Its physical appearance was a closely-guarded secret.

  Mack had asked Jazz, Anika and Phoenix if they would help the curators set up the exhibition in return for free tickets to the celebrity-studded opening party. Thanks to the group’s work that afternoon, many of the exhibits were now unpacked and in position, often to show an ancient artefact next to its modern counterpart.

  Dinner finished, the three friends strolled around the wing. At the beginning there was a Stone Age obsidian spearhead next to a modern obsidian medical blade, both sharpened using the same ancient technique. Further in, Phoenix had helped arrange specialised farming drones below hanging boomerangs and fish traps. Nearby, ancient Egyptian instruments were set into a steel alcove containing a modern synthesiser that could be activated by museum visitors to play samples of what the ancient instruments would have sounded like. Jazz’s favourite was near one of the glass walls where clever lighting allowed a sundial to display the same time as a state-of-the-art atomic clock.

  But it was the enormous statue of the Grimshaw Medusa, with her stern expression and snaky hair, which dominated the far end of the gallery. At two metres tall, she appeared to loom protectively over the other exhibits. The glass wall behind her revealed flowerbeds in full bloom and a lush green lawn.

  Jazz circled the Medusa, taking in the delicate carving and rich details; the Medusa’s stern, classically chiselled profile, her partly-open mouth and her head of snakes. ‘It’s beautifully sculpted,’ Jazz said. She took out her phone and snapped a photo. ‘A picture can’t do it justice, though. In comparison to the real thing it’s just so . . . flat.’

  ‘Check this out,’ said Phoenix. He rummaged around in his backpack before coming over with his laptop and a small handheld device. The device looked a bit like something a security officer at an airport would use for a body scan. When Phoenix switched it on, it sent out a narrow line of red light. ‘It’s a portable laser scanner,’ he explained. ‘Wait until you see what it can do.’ Phoenix dragged a packing crate over to the statue and climbed onto it. He ran the laser scanner all around Medusa then turned to his laptop, waving Jazz over. A 3D image of the statue appeared on the screen. The level of detail captured by the scanner was phenomenal.

  ‘Not so flat, huh?’ Phoenix boasted. ‘Look, I can manipulate the image and turn it side to side.’

  Jazz stood behind him, arms crossed. ‘Impressive,’ she remarked, ‘but it still can’t compare to the real thing.’

  ‘It must be tough for Mack to be missing out on seeing all of this before the crowds arrive,’ said Anika.

  ‘How’s her mum going?’ Phoenix asked.

  ‘She’s slowly getting better,’ Jazz explained. ‘But she still needs Mack to take care of her little brother after school.’

  ‘Poor Mack,’ Anika said sympathetically. ‘When the museum almost closed down, it was a bad time for the whole family. No wonder Mrs Zhang got sick.’

  ‘Well they won’t have to worry about the museum anymore. This exhibition will be huge! Everyone will want to see Sapphire,’ said Phoenix. ‘I can’t believe Sir Robert will be bringing it here tonight!’

  ‘It’s just some crazy computer,’ said Anika.

  ‘Crazy computer? Don’t you realise that it’s the most fantastic, awesome and brilliant piece of new technology on the planet? It is as priceless and irreplaceable as that ancient statue,’ Phoenix exclaimed, pointing to Medusa. ‘Sapphire is the world’s first crystalline quantum supercomputer, designed to run the most advanced artificial intelligence software ever. Do you even know what it’s capable of?’

  ‘You’ve told us a thousand times!’ replied Anika. She assumed an arrogant expression and made her voice slightly deeper to imitate Phoenix. ‘It’s like the greatest hacker of all time, it can uncover weaknesses in any and all websites.’

  On a roll about his favourite topic, Phoenix ignored her sarcasm and carried on. ‘That’s right. It’s an ethical, automated probe. Called a white-hat program. A failsafe way to test internet security.’

  ‘That’s what you call it,’ said Jazz. ‘Anything with the ability to bypass firewalls like that sounds like the opposite to me—a security breach waiting to happen.’

  But Phoenix shook his head emphatically. ‘No, it’s just the opposite. Sapphire will enhance internet security! Governments and corporations all over the world are lining up to have it test and patch their systems.’

  ‘It’s the Medusa statue that I’m interested in,’ said Jazz. ‘It’s one of a kind!’

  ‘Hey, check it out!’ exclaimed Anika, showing them her phone. ‘There’s a news piece about the exhibition.’ She propped up her phone for them all to see:

  ‘What it doesn’t mention,’ said Anika, putting her phone down, ‘is that Medusa is supposed to be cursed.’

  ‘And you think I’m an idiot for being excited by artificial intelligence,’ scoffed Phoenix.

  ‘It’s true!’ said Jazz.

  ‘Who was Medusa?’ Phoenix asked. ‘A goddess?’

  ‘No. She was one of the Gorgons in Greek legend, a sort of monster. It’s said that whoever looked on her face was immediately turned to stone. The Grimshaw statue was found near Naxos in the Greek Isles.’

  Phoenix wiggled his fingers ominously. ‘We’ve all looked at her, none of us have turned to stone!’

  ‘That’s the mythology,’ said Jazz. ‘A very old inscription on the base of the statue warns that if ever it’s moved from its original position outside one of Athena’s temples, catastrophe will ensue.’

  ‘Superstition!’ Phoenix rolled his grey eyes. ‘Catastrophes happen all the time. It’s got nothing to do with statues. Unless one falls on top of you! I don’t believe in curses. I believe in modern technology.’

  ‘I’m not so sure about that,’ said Anika, bringing up an article on her phone. ‘Just a couple of months ago, while they were loading the statue onto the container ship, a worker fell from some scaffolding and died.’

  ‘Workplace accident. Medusa had nothing to do with that. And if you want to avoid catastrophe, Sapphire is the way to go. It’s a quantum leap. It uses particles to store information. Imagine that, loading information onto an electron!’

  ‘All I can imagine right now is being in trouble with my dad if I’m not outside in five minutes for him to pick me up,’ said Anika.

  ‘Really? You’re not going to stick around to meet Sir Robert?’ asked Phoenix, incredulous.

  ‘We’re not all smitten with Sir Robert, Phoenix,’ Anika said, rolling her eyes. ‘But maybe if his son Toby turned up, I’d stick around,’ she joked, referring to the handsome heir to the Grimshaw estate.

  Jazz shook her head. ‘No chance of that. I don’t even know if Dr Zhang has met him.’

  ‘Isn’t he co-director of the exhibition or something?’ Phoenix asked.

  ‘Executive consultant,’ Anika confirmed as she picked up her jacket and stuffed it into her schoolbag. ‘He’s meant to be Sir Robert’s representative in Sydney, but all he seems to do is go to parties and get photographed. I don’t think he’s even been near the museum.’ Her phone chimed and she pulled it out of her pocket to check the message. ‘Dad’s here,’ she explained. ‘I better run. Catch you both later!’

  ‘Bye,’ said Phoenix.

  ‘See you,’ grinned Jazz.

  ‘Let’s go find Dr Zhang,’ said Phoenix when Anika had gone. ‘I want to know when Sir Robert’s getting here!’

  * * *

  As they came level with Dr Zhang’s office,
Jazz and Phoenix heard the sound of angry raised voices coming from inside. They paused, looking at each other uncertainly, standing in the corridor not far from the partly-open door.

  ‘You might be head of security, Gustav,’ Dr Zhang was saying, ‘but I run this museum. Sir Robert is happy to display Sapphire to the public and if he’s happy, I’m happy.’

  Gustav was the security guard who had signed off their key passes.

  ‘I’m not being unreasonable,’ they heard Gustav say. ‘I’m simply presenting the facts. We don’t have enough staff to guard Sapphire. Can’t you put on some extra people? Just for the duration of the exhibition?’

  ‘You know we don’t have the funds for that. Besides, I trust the staff we have. I don’t want to invite trouble by rushing out to hire strangers at the last minute.’

  ‘Dr Zhang, you are placing a priceless computer in jeopardy. Would you put Tutankhamun’s gold mask in a wing that can’t be properly guarded?’

  ‘That’s quite enough! Sir Robert is satisfied with our arrangements, and so am I. If you’re not, then maybe you need to be more efficient with your resourcing.’

  ‘But Dr Zhang—’

  Gustav was interrupted by the sound of Dr Zhang’s mobile ringing.

  ‘I need to take this call in private. Please leave!’

  Jazz and Phoenix scampered out of the way as Gustav came out of the office. His radio crackled to life with static and a voice requesting assistance in the Antiquities wing. ‘Copy that, Sammy, on my way,’ he grunted and strode down the corridor, slamming the door behind him.

  Unsure how long Dr Zhang’s phone call would take, Jazz and Phoenix hovered uncertainly outside of his office.

  ‘I can’t do that!’ they heard Dr Zhang exclaim. ‘Don’t you understand? I may have bent the rules a little in the past, but what you’re asking is quite impossible.’

  ‘Bent the rules?’ Jazz repeated in a whisper. ‘What does he mean? What can’t he do?’

  ‘Sh!’ said Phoenix. ‘Listen.’