The Lake of Terror

The Lake of Terror is the tenth book in The Real Adventures of Jonny Quest book series.

The novel is credited to "Brad Quentin", the pseudonym used for all the books in the series. The actual author is unconfirmed.

Premise
Official synopsis from the back cover: "JURASSIC JAWS!

It was like the Loch Ness Monster, only bigger -- a legendary creature that lurked in the waters of Lake Benedict. Some said it was a pleisosaur, a survivor from the age of dinosaurs.

It was called Thrasher, and the kids at Camp Odyssey had seen and even photographed it. But there was another camp across the lake, for rich kids only. The Future Edge campers not only believed in the monster -- they were going to use it to terrorize Camp Odyssey!

Called to the rescue, the Quest Team finds themselves meeting new friends -- and an old enemy. Don't miss this newest nonstop action adventure, as Jonny Quest and his teen pals jet-ski into the jaws of danger!"

Plot summary
At Camp Odyssey at night, three ten-year-olds are out by the lake: Wally, Spencer, and Nick. They see what appears to be a monster rise from the lake. They run back to camp.

In Questworld, Jonny is playing a game and walking through a virtual haunted house. He follows the clues of the game, leading to a dumbwaiter, which he opens to reveal the severed head of Jessie. Jessie's severed head magically rises and rushes at him, then kisses him on the cheek, and she tells him he's found the "treasure" and won the game. Jonny leaves Questworld, and congratulates Jessie and Hadji on designing the game, and he and Jessie tease each other about the "treasure". Dr. Quest calls them to his office.

They meet up with Dr. Quest, Race, and Bandit, and Dr. Quest tells them about a plan for "Camp Quest". Camp Odyssey is having some trouble, so Dr. Drake Black has invited Dr. Quest to help revamp and rebrand, so Dr. Quest will look over the camp. Camp Odyssey is having trouble with a rival camp, called Camp Future Edge, and there's allegedly a monster in the lake.

At Camp Odyssey, Wally, Spencer, and Nick tell Dr. Black about what they saw at the lake, but Dr. Black is skeptical. Dr. Gillian Matthews, the CEO of Sky High Industries that runs Camp Future Edge, arrives with her 15-year-old son Damien, and the two mock and antagonize the Odyssey campers and Dr. Black. They challenge Camp Odyssey to some camp athletic competition, which is accepted. Dr. Quest arrives, and is surprised that Dr. Matthews is there. The Quest Team joins them, but when Bandit arrives, Dr. Matthews calls it a rat, and Damien picks up a fire poker and prepares to "defend" his mother. Jonny stops them, and Jessie picks up Bandit. As they discuss the athletic competition between the camps, the Quest Team suggests adding a computer programming part of the competition, which is accepted. Dr. Matthews and her son leave. The campers then tell the Quest Team about their monster sighting. As they leave, Jessie and Jonny ask Race about Dr. Quest's history with Dr. Matthews, and Race discretely tells them that the two used to be sweethearts in college.

At Camp Future Edge, Damien practices at a shooting range with his mother. Dr. Matthews tells her son not to underestimate the Quest Team, and to prepare him, she's finally going to reveal the off-limits part of the camp to him. She takes him to an enclosed heavily-secure location, and tells him it's "the beginning of the death of the Quest Team."

At Camp Odyssey, Jonny shows Spencer how to play in a Questworld game, as a demonstration to the campers. After the game, Jonny, Jessie, and Hadji begin to teach the campers about code. Race also starts to give a martial arts demonstration, when a man arrives, calling them "pansies" and saying, "I'll show you martial arts!" The man is Joe Hamm, the martial arts instructor from Camp Future Edge, and Dr. Matthews had him come to "show [them] exactly what [they]'re up against." He challenges Jonny, but Race steps up, and the two spar. Hamm pretends to see something on fire, and when Race turns to look, Hamm gets him and knocks him down, and kicks him. The kids get involved to stop it, and Hamm leaves. The campers leave, disheartened. Race goes to talk to Dr. Quest. The kids decide to go to the lake and play with something Hadji and Jonny have been working on.

At the lake, Hadji and Jonny get the modified Quest JetSki in the wall, and they use it to ski around the lake. Near Camp Future Edge, something approaches them on the water. Damien Matthews sprays them with water on his own Sky High Industries JetSki. He challenges them to race their JetSkis, which Jonny accepts, but in the middle of the race, Jonny hits a branch in the water and falls from his JetSki, so Damien wins. Damien asks Jessie to join him for dinner some night at Camp Future Edge, and Jessie accepts. Damien departs, but Jonny is upset, but Hadji figures out it's because she wants to get a closer look a the operations at Camp Future Edge.

For the next few days, the Quest Team focuses on teaching the campers, while Dr. Quest and Dr. Black work on the education program. But one morning, they find that the entire computer lab has been destroyed. Dr. Quest realizes he needs to confront Dr. Matthews. Then Spencer, Wally, and Nick come running up, shouting that they saw the monster again and this time got a photograph.

Jonny and Jessie take the JetSki out again, looking for the monster. Past Lookout Point, they enter a kind of lagoon and they are attacked by frogmen. At Camp Odyssesy, it's past noon and Race is worried that Jonny and Jessie aren't back yet. Hadji and Dr. Quest have worked on developing a high resolution photograph of the alleged monster, which appears to be mechanical. Meanwhile, Jonny and Jessie and being held at Camp Future Edge by Dr. Matthews, and it comes to light that they're developing technology to brainwash people, which they plan on using on their own campers, and which they will use on Jonny and Jessie to erase parts of their memories. As it's about to begin, a phone call from Dr. Quest comes in for Dr. Matthews. She leaves to take it, leaving Damien to ensure it's done.

On the call, Dr. Matthews denies knowing anything about Jonny and Jessie's disappearance. She invites him to meet her that evening after six o'clock, and they end the call. Instead of waiting that long, Hadji has a plan. They run into Wally, Spencer, and Nick, who ask about Jonny and Jessie. After the Quest Team moves on, the three boys decide they should look themselves. Hadji proposes looking into the Future Edge computers, using the undamaged Quest notebook computers and Questworld. Race and Dr. Quest login.

At Camp Future Edge, Jonny and Jessie are in the Camp Future Edge virtual alternative dimension, which appears to be like QuestWorld. They head toward the sound of running water. An earthquake opens a fissure in the ground behind them. They find a river, and large monster rises from it.

Wally, Spencer, and Nick arrive on the shore of Camp Future Edge. They make it through the camp and climb a high metal fence. They spot the Quest JetSki leaning against a building, and they enter the building's elevator.

In the virtual reality setting, Jonny and Jessie run from the monster. Jonny realizes that the monster represents what the program would do to them by wiping their memories. As the creature is catching up, a blinding light comes from the top a hill, the creature bellows, and Dr. Quest and Race appear, holding weapons.

In the tech room, Dr. Matthews demands to know what's going on with the program, but the technicians only know there's some sort of interference. Dr. Matthews realizes it's Dr. Quest, and she decides to go in and confront him with weaponry of her own. Before going in, she tells Damien that she didn't want to hurt anyone, she just wanted to cover their tracks by erasing the kids' knowledge. Damien asks what she means, and she tells him the Quest Team "have to die".

In the virtual alternative dimension, Race fires on the monster. Dr. Matthews and Hamm arrive with their own weaponry, and she aims her gun at them.

Wally, Spencer, and Nick take the elevator down and look into the room where Jonny and Jessie are being held. In an attempt to help them, Nick tries to make his voice sound official and shouts to put their hands in the air, it's the police.

In the virtual alternative dimension, the Quest Team ducks as Dr. Matthews fires her guns. She aims and is about to fire again, but her from flickers, and she leaves the virtual setting. Her weapons fall, and Hamm makes to grab them, but Race fights him off, defeating him this time. Just as Jonny is celebrating, everything goes blank around him.

When Nick's calls that the police are there don't work, the boys run into the room to see Jonny, Jessie, Dr. Matthews, and Hamm all connected with alternative dimension devices. Spencer pulls the equipment from Dr. Matthews, disconnecting her and causing her to wake up. One of the technicians grabs him. Nick and Wally split up. Nick is grabbed, but Wally is able to get Jonny's equipment off him, and Jonny wakes up. Jonny pulls the headgear from Jessie, and she also wakes up. One of the technicians attacks Jonny, but Jonny hits him, and he drops. Jonny assesses the situation, with the other techs holding Nick and Spencer. Jonny gives them opportunity to leave, since his father already knows what's going on and has exported the necessary files to prove it, but the techs can leave to avoid being implicated for murder. Damien, who was checking on his mother, agrees, and lets Jonny, Jessie, and the three boys go.

Later, Dr. Black gets off the phone, and informs the Quest Team that Camp Future Edge apparently no longer exists, and Dr. Matthews and her crew got away. Dr. Quest has made the decision to add his name and endorsement to Camp Odyssey, which will now be Camp Quest. Wally, Spencer, and Nick come in with a sign reading "Camp Quest: Where the Future is Knowledge". The boys are looking forward to more computer classes and want to ride on the JetSki.

Characters

 * Jonny Quest
 * Hadji Bingh
 * Jessie Bannon
 * Dr. Benton Quest
 * Race Bannon
 * Bandit

Camp Odyssey / Camp Quest:
 * Dr. Drake Black
 * Wally Morris, camper, 10 years old
 * Spencer Litvotski, camper, 10 years old
 * Nick Silbersack, camper, 10 years old

Camp Future Edge / Sky High Industries:
 * Dr. Gillian Matthews, CEO of Sky High Industries
 * Damien Matthews, Gillian's 15-year-old son
 * Joe Hamm, martial arts instructor
 * Wilson, a technician

Companies:
 * Sky High Industries, they own Future Camp

Other:
 * Thrasher, an alleged monster the live in Lake Benedict
 * Loch Ness Monster
 * Ogopogo, an alleged monster that lives in Okanagan Lake

Locations

 * New York, USA
 * Upper New York State
 * Hundred Lakes
 * Camp Odyssey
 * Computer room
 * Camp Future Edge
 * Shooting range
 * Sky High Industries underground research center
 * Lake Benedict
 * Lookout Point
 * Long Island
 * Okanagan Lake in British Columbia
 * Mortimer Prep School, where Damien attends
 * The Keys
 * Caribbean Islands


 * Rockport, Maine, USA
 * Quest Compound
 * Lighthouse
 * Dr. Quest's office


 * Questworld
 * Sky High Industries' alternative dimension system

Objects

 * VR Visor
 * Quest notebook computers
 * Quest Team wristwatch

Vehicles

 * Quest Team Explorer, four-wheel drive vehicle
 * Quest Team trailers
 * Quest JetSki
 * Sky High Industries JetSki

Notes/trivia

 * ISBN-10: ISBN 0-06-105724-X / ISBN-13: ISBN 978-0-06-105724-3
 * The book consists of 17 chapters and a scientific afterword. It's 136 pages.
 * The book is dedicated to Johanna Silbersack. Presumably related to this, the second book in the series, The Forbidden City of Luxor, is dedicated to Nichols Silbersack.
 * One of the book characters, Nick Silbersack, shares a similar name to Nichols Silbersack and Johanna Silbersack, two individuals to whom two books in the series are dedicated.
 * Dr. Quest was in a fraternity in college.
 * Dr. Quest was previously engaged to Dr. Gillian Matthews.
 * The QuestWorld and virtual reality setting used by Sky High Industries is often referred to as an "alternative dimension" in this book.

Goofs and inconsistencies:
 * Hadji is named "Hadji Bingh" instead of "Hadji Singh", as he is in all books in the series.
 * On page 94, "Jessie Benton" is written instead of "Jessie Bannon".
 * On page 121, "Quest time" is written instead of "Quest Team".