“Neep-Barp! NEEP-BARP!”

“He’s getting closer” said Katzilow. “We have GOT to get rid of that Buzby inside you Wizard! That noise he’s making is bringing Nascarbalone Trinth close evry second!!”

“Wiz! Try and sneeze! Buzby might come out!” said Walpurgis. “As long as he’s inside you, Nascarbalone can track us down!”

“NEEEEEP-BAAAAAARP! Hic!” went Wiz. He looked sadly at Dot.

She gave him a squeeze. “Do try Wizzo!” she said, smiling at him to make him feel better. “Just think of geraniums!”

(They always make Wiz sneeze. Got so bad that Dad had to dig up a whole new bed of them from the front garden!)

“First things first!” said Carmeramalita. “We must download this Wisp!” She looked round at her fellow TricTrucTrackers, all bobbing slightly up and down as if they were rubber ducks on the sea, bathed in the pale blue light of Colony Cerulean. As far as the eye could see around them, above and blow, stretched the thousands of Wisps, the cyber versions of the Cerulean family of computer mice, like Mr Mouse himself.

But in the centre of the circle of TricTrucTrackers was THE one. You could tell that because now all the MiniTracs were glowing green – and the Wisp they were looking at wasn’t floating anymore – it was as if it were frozen in space.

“Ye… yes, of course!” said Walpurgis. “Silly of me!” He looked round at his friends.

“Immediate – extend MiniTracs!” he said. Each of the TricTrucTrackers held their little tracking devices out at arm’s length towards the Wisp. The MiniTracs suddenly glowed an even brighter green.

Walpurgis nodded, and extended his MiniTrac towards the Wisp too. “Good trace!” he said. “Prepare! – on my note!” He closed his eyes. “Hummmmmmm… ”

“Hum… Hummm… Hummmmmm…. HUMMMMMMMMMM” went Eldenbeam, Katzilow, Hombellyton and Carmeramalita – her voice rising clear and high over the rest.

As she reached her highest hum, the Wisp began to quiver. Then, crinkly orange lines of light shot out from it, each forming a line that zoomed straight across to each of the MiniTracs. After a moment though, the lines faded away with a fizzing sound and disappeared.

Walpurgis looked down at his device. From her seat on the courtesy carrier on his back, Dot peeped over his shoulder. On the MiniTrac’s little screen, a picture of a computer mouse was turning round and round in 3D as if showing you every angle – like you can do when you’re internet shopping sometimes and want to see what you’re buying from every angle.

“PLINK!” went Walpurgis’ MiniTrac, and the movement stopped.

“Mouse Clicks – absorbed!” said Walpurgis. He held his MiniTrac up again towards the Wisp, and all the other TricTrucTrackers did the same.

“Harmmmmmmmmmmmmm” he went, a different hum this time.

“Hic!” went Wiz again. “Neep-BARP!”

“Wiz!” whispered Dot fiercely. “Think GERANIUMS!”

“What – hic! – are geraniums, anyway?” asked Wiz.

“Harm… Harmmm… Harmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!” went all the other TricTrucTrackers. Once again, lines of light shot out from the Wisp of Mr Mouse, towards all the MiniTracs. But this time, they were purple.

“You know – the red flowers – those things Mum put in the front garden last year!”

“Red… red flowers… last year…” said Wiz, thinking really hard.

“Come on, come ON!” said Walpurgis, staring hard at his MiniTrac screen once again.

“PLINK!”

“Mouse Scrolls – absorbed!” said Walpurgis. He looked up and tucked his MiniTrac inside his jacket.

“TricTrucTrackers – depart!”

Moving together, the TricTrucTrackers turned round and with Walpurgis leading - and Dot holding on to him as hard as she could - shot down through the thousands of Wisps. Just as before, they all gently gave way before the TricTrucTrackers’ swimming arms, flying back towards the entrance to Colony Cerulean. And not a moment too soon!

“NEEP-BARP! NEEP-BARP! NEEP-BAAARRRRRRRRRPP!”

“Geraniums Wiz! Peppery smell! You couldn’t stop sneezing!” said Dot desperately.

“Ah-tishoo, like that!” went Fromage. “Make the sneeezes Wizard! Queeck!”

“It’s too late!” said Walpurgis, breathing deeply as he flew forward through the blue air of Colony Cerulean. “Trinth is right on top of us! But we have all the data we need to search-find Mr Mouse’s location. Those were good tracks – he’s being used on a computer right now, wherever he is. All we have to do is get away and work on the datasets! If we can only get past that dratted Zonemaster!”

With a whoosh, they broke through the lowest layer of Ceruleans, and there at last was the outer wall of the Colony Cerulean tent. No door again though!

“Dee da dee DA DEE DA” went Walpurgis once again.

“Dee da dee DA DEE DA” replied the TricTrucTrackers behind him.

As if by magic, with just metres to go, a door appeared in the billowing tent-wall of Colony Cerulean. It looked very narrow though – the most that the TricTrucTrackers could sing into being in the time they had, Dot supposed.

“Form Line!” shouted Walpurgis.

No argument this time – looking back over her shoulder, Dot saw the TricTrucTrackers swinging behind each other to form a straight line. But the door was fading away!

“Faster, everyone!” shouted Walpurgis, his voice cracking with strain.

Could they… would they…

ZEET! Done it! They were through, outside the great tent once again!

And there was Lucia!

With Nascarbalone Trinth sitting in her bow!