GO ONLINE AND JOIN THE QUEST!www.astrallegacies.com

Condors’QuestTHE SOUTH AMERICAN LEGACY

THE ASTRAL LEGACIES

This edition published in Great Britain in 2011 by Quest, an imprint of Top That! Publishing plc,Marine House, Tide Mill Way, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP12 1AP, UK

www.quest-books.co.uk0 2 4 6 8 9 7 5 3 1

Editorial Director – Daniel GrahamCreative Director – Simon Couchman

Art Editor – Matt Denny Website Design – Paul Strandoo

Commissioning Editor - Lorna ThomsonJunior Editor – Eleanor Rose

Written by Gordon Volke

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, ortransmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise,

without the prior written permission of the publisher.Neither this book nor any part or any of the illustrations, photographs or reproductions contained in itshall be sold or disposed of otherwise than as a complete book, and any unauthorised sale of such partillustration, photograph or reproduction shall be deemed to be a breach of the publisher’s copyright.

ISBN 978-1-84956-104-4

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British LibraryPrinted and bound in China

This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, incidents and dialogues are products of the author’simagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, events or locales is

entirely coincidental.

Written by Gordon Volke

The Astral LegaciesCondors’ Quest

Published by Quest.Quest is an imprint of Top That! Publishing plc,

Tide Mill Way, Woodbridge, Suffolk, IP12 1AP, UKwww.quest-books.co.uk

Copyright © 2011 Top That! Publishing plc. All rights reserved

4

The Astral Legacies

How the book works …

Join Angelina in her quest to find the fifth Astral Legacy

by searching for the hidden locations online. At key

points in the book, the condors provide Angelina with

precise information relating to the destinations that she

must visit in order to complete her quest. Each GPS

(Global Positioning System) coordinate that is

transmitted by the condors represents a precise location

in South America.

By entering the GPS coordinates into the GeoLocator

function on www.astrallegacies.com, you will be able to

travel with Angelina on her quest. Click the condor icon

on the revolving carousel, then select the ‘GeoLocator’

link to begin. For example, try these coordinates – they

will take you to Easter Island in Chile.

27°07' S,109°22' W

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Condors’ Quest

When you ‘arrive’ at each new destination online, you

will discover the famous landmark that Angelina is seeking.

Enter GPScode here

Selectcompassdirectionhere

Click onthe redarrow toreveal thelocation

Use thisslider tozoom inand see thelocation inmore detail

Explorethe areain moredetail byclickinghere

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The Astral Legacies

As the adventure unfolds, keep a note of the locations

that you find. When you have identified all ten key

locations that Angelina visits on her quest, enter the words

that make up each location into the ‘snake’ grid at the

back of this book. If you have inserted the correct answers,

letters which form the location of the fifth Astral Legacy

will be revealed, highlighted in the grey numbered boxes.

Transfer these numbered letters into the corresponding

spaces in the solution boxes at the bottom of the page to

reveal the full location name.

Log-on to www.astrallegacies.com to report the location

of the fifth Astral Legacy. If you successfully enter this

final landmark, the quest is complete and you will be able

to read the thrilling climax to Condors’ Quest online.

Once you have completed the

snake grid, the letters, highlighted

in grey, spell out part of the

location of the fifth Astral Legacy.

Transfer these letters into the

corresponding, numbered

spaces in the solutions grid below.

? ?

?

?

?

?

GPS 4

GPS 3

GPS 5

GPS 2

GPS 1

Solution

OF THE

1 2

3

4

5

6

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 3.

7

Condors’ Quest

Important Hints & Tips

• Enter the GPS coordinates accurately, including the

compass direction.

• Use the ‘Notes’ section at the back of this book to

record the locations that you identify as you progress

through the quest. You will then have everything at hand

to complete the ‘snake’ puzzle at the end of the book and

finish the quest with Angelina.

• The condors have provided additional clues to help

you fill in the snake puzzle correctly at the back of

this book.

• If you are still unable to work out the locations that

Angelina visits, log on to www.astrallegacies.com. The

names of the locations are revealed on the photo

carousel on the Condors’ Quest section of the website.

8

Chapter 1

The Angel Of The Streets

The alien spaceships appeared at one minute past

midnight on New Year’s Day. They flew in V-

shaped formations, methodically passing up and

down every land mass in the world, like a farmer

ploughing a field. There was no stopping them. The

spaceships were moving at a steady Mach 10 and

the human fighter jets sent to intercept them simply

could not keep up. One moment the aliens were in

range; the next, they had disappeared from the

radar. Humankind was completely defenceless

against this mighty onslaught. It had no idea what

was coming and had no means whatsoever of

dealing with it.

Had anyone been able to get near the fleets of the

sleek silver spaceships, they would have seen that

they were all emitting a strange vibrating light

directed down towards the ground. It was a weapon

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Condors’ Quest

of awesome and unimaginable power, seeking out

and destroying human DNA. Any person who came

near it simply vaporised in a matter of seconds,

leaving the clothes they were wearing in little heaps

on the ground. There was no escape from this

horrific death-ray; the aliens made sure of that. Not

only were the teams of spaceships combing the

ground and emitting the ray at all possible angles,

they had follow-up units that swooped in at even

higher speeds with extra-powerful beams to

eradicate any stragglers who might have escaped by

working in high-rise buildings or underground

mines. Meanwhile, specialist units patrolled the

oceans, emitting a marine variant of the ray that

oscillated from horizon to horizon, penetrating both

steel and water to reach people on ships or in

submarines.

The effect on the world was catastrophic!

Without their drivers, millions of cars careered off

the road and crashed. Without their pilots,

aeroplanes dropped from the sky like stones,

10

The Astral Legacies

flattening buildings and setting them on fire. Empty

trains hurtled off the rails and jack-knifed into piles

of twisted metal. Untended machines went out of

control and factories exploded. Chaos and

destruction reigned on every continent of the world!

The screams of billions of people echoed to the

skies and then gradually turned into silence. As the

day wore on and this mass extinction began to near

completion, the planet became a quiet place with

nothing but the crackling of fires burning out of

control and the crash of falling buildings to replace

the many different sounds of human activity.

All of the other living things in the world,

however, remained completely untouched. The

death-ray only targeted humans, passing over pets,

livestock and wild animals without harming a hair,

feather or fin on their bodies. Similarly, flowers and

trees remained unharmed, as did all reptiles and

insects, right down the evolutionary chain as far as

bacteria and micro-organisms. In the space of just a

few hours, humankind, who had ruled Earth so

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Condors’ Quest

carelessly for the last 50,000 years had become a

thing of the past; people no longer existed. Homo

sapiens were extinct …

With a gasp of horror, Angelina Romero sat bolt

upright in bed, her eyes wide open with terror.

Sweat poured down her face, even though it was a

cold night in Bogotá, the capital city of Colombia in

South America.

‘You okay?’ asked a young voice in the darkness.

‘Just a nightmare, Juan,’ whispered Angelina. ‘Go

back to sleep.’

‘As long as you’re okay,’ insisted the boy.

‘Nothing must ever happen to you!’

‘I’m fine,’ urged the fifteen-year-old girl. ‘I’m just

going to get myself a drink.’

Still shaking from the intensity of her dream,

Angelina crept through the dormitory where her

charges, the ‘gamines’ or street children of Bogotá’s

slums, lay sleeping in the warmth and safety of the

rescue centre.

Angelina had been a street child herself once.

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The Astral Legacies

Born into extreme poverty in the mid-nineties and

left to fend for herself, almost as soon as she could

walk and talk, she had avoided the many dangers of

the streets by a combination of luck, extreme fitness

and an iron will to survive. The greatest danger had

been the death squads, hired by wealthy

businessmen, who regarded the street children as

vermin or ‘throwaway children’. Thousands of

desperate, starving youngsters had been taken away

and murdered so they would no longer spoil the

appearance of Bogotá’s shops and offices.

Angelina had avoided the killers by remaining

one step ahead of them all the time. She never slept

in the same place twice, always listened to the talk

on the streets, learning the identity of the members

of the squads and disappearing as soon as one of

them was sighted, and she trusted no one, not even

her fellow gamines who could easily be bribed into

an act of treachery by the offer of food or money.

Two years ago, just after her thirteenth birthday,

Angelina had been picked up, close to death, by one

13

Condors’ Quest

of the small privately-run charities that were

eventually set up to help the street children of

Bogotá. Starving, Angelina had barely eaten for a

month; any food she had managed to get was given

to the small gaggle of starving children, who had

started following her in the hope of finding

protection. One rainy night, soaked to the skin and

desperate, she had collapsed on a dirty street corner

and had been abandoned by her young followers,

who realised she would no longer be of any use to

them. Only one boy, Juan, remained loyal, begging

passers-by for assistance.

Eventually, an elderly lady helped him drag

Angelina’s almost lifeless body to the San Cristobal

Mission, where she’d been taken in and nursed back

to health by the team of dedicated social workers.

Instead of returning to the streets, Angelina had

become the eyes and ears of the care team, using her

extensive experience of life on the street to rescue

further children from a life of depravation and

crime. She was loved and respected by everyone,

14

The Astral Legacies

living up to her name, which means ‘angel’ in

Spanish.

Clutching a cup of hot chocolate and a couple of

sweet biscuits to sooth her jangling nerves, Angelina

tiptoed past the now quietly snoring Juan, and

slipped back into bed. Tomorrow, she was due to

take a group of excited youngsters to Bogotá’s main

pleasure park, the Parque Jaime Duque, so she

needed some more sleep.

But, it was not to be. No sooner had she closed

her eyes, the horrifying dream returned! More alien

spaceships, vaporised humans and ruined cities

crowded in on her mind, making her sit up again in

absolute terror. What was going on? Never in her

life had she experienced the same dream twice!

Where had it come from? She’d seen many terrible,

upsetting sights during her dramatic young life, but

none of them came close to the horror and finality

of this act of alien obliteration. Fearing a return to

the nightmare for a third time, Angelina lay awake

until it started to get light and then went for a

15

Condors’ Quest

shower. Maybe the hot water would wash away the

images of so much death and destruction.

Having lived rough for many years, Angelina

always kept herself spotlessly clean. Despite this, she

didn’t care what she looked like, usually wearing

cast-off clothes given to the mission by various

charities. Today, however, she put on her best jeans

and a new tee shirt with a big letter ‘A’ on the front,

given to her by one of the social workers. She

needed to look smart to visit the upmarket pleasure

park with her young charges. Gazing at herself in

the full-length bathroom mirror, Angelina felt a

glow of satisfaction as she took in her slim athletic

figure. For most of her life she had been painfully

thin. Now she was lithe and strong with powerful

muscles that gave her the appearance of a long-

distance runner. Her large and luminously green

eyes stared back at her in the reflection. Although

her mouth smiled nearly all the time, her

mesmerising eyes never did. They darted

everywhere, taking in everything at a glance,

16

The Astral Legacies

constantly looking for danger. It was a throwback

to her days on the street; old survival habits

die hard.

Giving herself one last look in the mirror,

Angelina pulled her long, dark hair up into a

ponytail and headed downstairs. Wandering into the

deserted lounge to wait for breakfast, she turned on

the TV in the hope of finding some football. All

sport interested her, but football was her great

passion. She was a keen supporter of her local team,

the Millonarios, and a regular visitor to their El

Campín Stadium when time and funds allowed. She

was also a very talented player with excellent ball

control and a breathtaking turn of speed down the

wing. Unfortunately, there was no game being

shown at such an early hour of the day, so she

made do with some cartoons until the rest of the

house began to stir.

Later that morning, Angelina led four boys and

two girls to the Parque Jaime Duque. They were all

streetwise teenagers, perfectly capable of looking

17

Condors’ Quest

after themselves, so their young leader had been told

to show them around the park, give them some

money, mention a time and a place to meet back,

and then let them go. This suited Angelina. Trying

to contain their excitement at such a thrilling visit,

her charges had already started to give her a

headache, so she carried out her orders and soon

made her way to the zoo area for a little peace and

quiet.

Even though it was still only mid-morning,

Angelina sat on a bench beside the aviary and ate all

of her packed lunch. Then, closing her eyes and

putting her hands behind her head, she sat back to

enjoy the feel of the sun on her face.

‘It’s all true, you know,’ said a strange voice.

‘What happened in your dream will soon happen

for real unless you can prevent it.’

Opening her eyes, Angelina looked around, but

failed to see anyone remotely near her.

‘Over here!’ ordered an abrupt voice. Looking

up, Angelina saw a pair of enormous Andean

18

The Astral Legacies

condors staring down at her from the cage beside

her seat. She realised with a jolt that a condor was

talking to her!

‘Yes, we are talking to you,’ confirmed the first

condor. ‘Now, listen very carefully to what we’re

about tell you. Your life, those of the youngsters

you work so hard to protect, and everyone else in

the world, depends upon it. You cannot afford to

get anything wrong, Angelina!’

* * * * * * * * * * *

The condors told Angelina a story so incredible that

she felt like laughing and walking away. However,

what they were saying fitted perfectly with her

disturbing nightmare. There was something

seriously weird going on here and she needed to

find out what it was before dismissing it. So,

Angelina listened intently to everything the birds

had to say. Then, she methodically recapped on it

all to make sure she’d got it right.

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Condors’ Quest

‘Let’s get this straight,’ she stammered. ‘You’re

telling me …

‘One, aliens colonised Earth thousands of years

ago and were destroyed by a meteor that shattered

their spaceship and blew away the seven elements

that propelled it at the speed of light.

‘Two, the aliens have now returned to reclaim

these elements, which are known as the Astral

Legacies. The task of finding these legacies falls to

seven human teenagers, who have to complete the

whole task within a year. So far, four have been

recovered and three remain hidden. I am one of the

chosen teenagers and my task is to find the fifth

legacy, which is hidden somewhere on the continent

of South America. You, the condors, are my chosen

mentors.

‘Three, if all the legacies are not found in that

time, the aliens will destroy all human life in the

manner depicted in my dream. This is because

they’re furious about the greedy and destructive way

humankind has treated the Earth. The fate of

20

The Astral Legacies

humanity rests squarely on my shoulders. If I do not

succeed, the human race will be obliterated.

‘Four, in order to test my strength and

resourcefulness, I will be given ten global

positioning coordinates via mental telepathy, and

must visit the places. Each successful visit will

trigger the next set of coordinates. In order to test

me and confirm that the younger generation will be

fit to lead the world if it survives, the aliens have

stipulated that an extra dimension should be added

to my task. In the same way that you, the condors,

soar above the world, every place that I visit needs

to be looked down on from above. Ten successful

visits will enable me to solve a puzzle that will

reveal the whereabouts of the fifth legacy.

‘Five, the money I shall need for this epic journey

around South America will be provided in an

unexpected and highly dangerous way. If I do not

grasp the opportunity when it is offered to me, I

will not get a second chance and no further funds

will be forthcoming. And, finally, I must tell no one

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Condors’ Quest

about my quest.’

The condors looked at each other like a pair of

approving teachers in old-fashioned black gowns.

‘That is a concise and accurate summary of the

situation,’ commented the first condor. ‘You have a

sharp intelligence. We have chosen well.’

‘Do you have any questions?’ asked the other

bird. ‘We will not speak to you again until we direct

you as to where to find the final puzzle – provided

you get that far, of course. So, anything you want to

know needs to be settled now.’

‘When do I start?’ asked Angelina, already fired-

up and ready to tackle the greatest challenge of her

life.

‘Soon,’ replied the first condor.

‘You’ll know when the time comes,’ added the

second.

Then, the aviary-keeper arrived with some

carrion for the huge birds and the conversation

came to an end. Looking at her watch, Angelina

realised that it was almost time to meet up with her

132

The Astral Legacies

What happens next?

When you have identified the ten key locations that

Angelina visits on her quest, use the condors’ clues

on pages 136–137 to help you place them into the

snake grid on pages 134–135. Be careful to insert

the place names correctly in the order labelled in the

grid, for example, the first location that you will

need to insert is GPS 4. If you insert the correct

answers, letters which form the location of the fifth

Astral Legacy will be revealed, highlighted in the

grey numbered boxes. Transfer these numbered

letters into the corresponding spaces in the solution

boxes at the bottom of the page to reveal the full

location name.

133

Condors’ Quest

When you have filled in all of the boxes, log-on

to www.astrallegacies.com to report the location of

the fifth legacy. If you successfully enter this final

landmark into the website, the adventure is

complete, and you will be able to read the thrilling

climax to Condors’ Quest online.

Read the book … find the hidden locations …

solve the puzzle … save the world!

www.astrallegacies.com

134

The Astral Legacies

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 3.

OF THE

Solution

GPS 4

GPS 3

GPS 5

GPS 2

GPS 1

1 2

3

4

5

6

135

Condors’ Quest

1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.

OF

Solution

1GPS 7

GPS 9

GPS 10

GPS 8

GPS 6

2 7

4

3 6

10

8 9

5

136

The Astral Legacies

GPS CODE 1 - An old building right in the heart of the

Brazilian rainforest that holds concerts and is a centre

for arts.

THE AMAZONIAN

GPS CODE 2 - A beautifully preserved Inca city situated

in the mountains of Peru.

GPS CODE 3 - A park in Ecuador with a monument

marking the equator.

GPS CODE 4 - A white tower in Caracas where the

ashes of Simón Bolívar are buried.

THE NATIONAL

GPS CODE 5 - A waterfall in Guyana, bigger than both

Niagara and Victoria Falls.

137

Condors’ Quest

GPS CODE 6 - You need a bucket and spade

(and a football) to visit this holiday destination in

Rio de Janeiro.

GPS CODE 7 - A tall, iconic tower right in the centre of

Argentina’s capital city.

THE

GPS CODE 8 - The largest producer of wine

in Argentina.

GPS CODE 9 - The highest mountain in the Andes.

GPS CODE 10 - A strange moon-like valley in the

Atacama Desert, northern Chile.

144

The Astral Legacies

About the Author

Gordon Volke’s commercial writing career began in1972 when he was responsible for inventing thecomic antics of Dennis the Menace, Minnie theMinx and The Bash Street Kids in the UK’s best-selling comic, The Beano.

Since this auspicious start to his writing career,Gordon has gained plaudits by originating materialfor Snoopy (Peanuts), Tom and Jerry, Popeye andGarfield, and has been the principal contributor fornumerous comics and magazines, including Twinkle,Thomas the Tank Engine, The James BondExperience and Jurassic Park.

In 1998, Gordon began writing for The Tweenies,the Bafta award-winning pre-school series, scripting44 of the 365 episodes.

Over the years Gordon has originated children’sbooks covering most genres and age categories. Helives near Brighton on the south coast of England.