Little Comic Shop of Horrors

by RL Stine

  You roll your eyes. “Yeah, right.”

  “It’s true!” Wally insists. “Now, here’s the deal. We can shift from comic to comic, using a magic word. But if you use it too often, you’ll turn into an inkblot.” He shudders. “It happened to the kid I was with. Alex. He tried to leave this comic. Now he’s just a smear.”

  You glance anxiously at the robot. It’s awfully close.

  “We’ll be smeared, too, if we don’t get out of here!” you declare.

  Turn to PAGE 33.

  You think hard. Then you yell, “Guest shot!”

  Instantly, the shadows vanish in bright fluorescent light.

  “Golly,” a voice says in your ear. “Look at that!”

  You gaze around. Huh? You’re in the middle of a bunch of school kids dressed in old-fashioned clothes. What’s the deal? You expected to find yourself in another adventure of Ballistic Bug. Instead, you’ve been dropped into some nerdy school trip.

  Nervously, you glance upward. With your luck, another giant robot will turn up any second.

  “Gosh, Peewee,” the girl beside you exclaims. “We’re visiting a nuclear power plant! Isn’t this neat?”

  “Yeah,” a bigger kid with a black crew cut sneers. “Maybe for a dweeb like Peewee Parkbench.”

  Is he talking about you?

  You glance down at yourself. Your eyes bug out. Weirder and weirder! You’ve changed into a nerdy-looking character in a bow tie.

  Then you realize who you’re supposed to be.

  Peewee Parkbench, the secret identity of Ballistic Bug!

  Turn to PAGE 72.

  “Well,” you reason, “if Frankenstein catches up to me again, I can always run faster.”

  But the idea of Frankenstein popping up again worries you. You turn to glance over your shoulder as you run.

  BONK!

  You see stars. You ran straight into a wall!

  You glance quickly around the room.

  Hmm.

  There’s no way out, except for the doorway you entered.

  And standing in that doorway is …

  Frankenstein.

  The creature doesn’t even snarl as it stalks toward you. You’re caught, fair and square.

  And, as Frankenstein starts painfully trying to unscrew your head from your neck, you remember how the monster caught its victims.

  They all wound up running into a dead

  END.

  The kid with the buzzcut pushes past, stomping on your toes.

  “Hey!” you complain in a geeky voice. “Watch it!”

  “Make me,” Buzzcut sneers.

  You grin. Okay, he asked for it.

  You try to call upon Ballistic Bug’s insect strength.

  Nothing happens!

  Then you remember what the girl next to you said. This must be the famous visit to the nuclear plant. The one where Peewee gets his incredible superpowers.

  You don’t have them … yet.

  Get the details on PAGE 120.

  It’s a simple choice. Of course you jump Tex Loudsnore!

  Not that it’s easy. He runs around, yelling, “Halt! Stop! I command you!” And you have to be careful not to stomp him accidentally. He’s your ticket out of this crazy comic-book world!

  Finally, you catch him. Holding him carefully in one fist, you bring the mad scientist up to your face. “You’re going to help me get home!” you demand.

  At least, that’s what you meant to say. But instead of words, flames come roaring out of your mouth.

  In seconds, the only man who could have helped you is extra-crispy!

  “Oh, no!” you gasp. More flames roar from your lips.

  There’s only one thing left to do.

  “Guest shot!” you try to cry.

  But since you can’t speak, you don’t vanish. Your despairing words once again lash out as flames, setting the laboratory on fire!

  Go to PAGE 58.

  You glance up. A huge hammer is hurtling toward your head!

  You throw up your hands. But you know that won’t stop the falling hammer. You’re dead!

  Your skin suddenly starts to tingle. Sparks fly around your hair. Then a lightning bolt flies from your head. It smashes the hammer to bits!

  Your jaw drops. You stare at the pieces of wrecked hammer. “No way! This can’t be happening!” you blurt out.

  While you blink in disbelief, the wreckage fades away. You’re in a bare, gleaming room with a grid on the walls.

  You’ve seen this place before! It’s the Peril Parlor, where Y’s Guys practice their powers against holograms.

  And that means …

  You glance down at yourself. Sure enough, you’re in the pink-and-blue uniform of Y’s Guys. And with that lightning bolt on your chest, you’d have to be …

  “Yo, RAY-ge,” another pink-and-blue hero calls to you. “Professor Y wants to see us.”

  Professor Y! That’s the scientist you want to see!

  Meet the professor on PAGE 35.

  The hazzafrazza device looks much safer! you think.

  You stand under the floodlight on a set of copper and steel circles, one inside another.

  Tex Loudsnore starts pulling switches. The floodlight winks into life. Eerie, pulsing light shines down on you.

  All of a sudden, you feel very strange. It’s as if your body is stretching. Hey! This is sort of how you felt when the comics rack was spinning! Are you on your way home?

  The lab fades away. But you can still see Tex Loudsnore dancing around, cackling.

  “I’m your worst enemy, Super-Doofus!” he shouts. “Did you really think I was going to help you? The hazzafrazza device is a matter transmitter. And I set it for the center of the star Vega!”

  You try to scream, but no sound comes out. The lab is gone. A brilliant glow surrounds you. The glow gets brighter and brighter — not to mention hotter and hotter.

  Too bad. But look on the bright side. At least you got to be a real star in

  THE END!

  “Hey!” you shout, flying straight at the store owner’s face. The closer you come, the bigger his face seems to get.

  In fact, the closer you come, the bigger the whole guy looks.

  Oh, no!

  You escaped from the comic, but something went terribly wrong. You’re still the size of a comics drawing! You’re barely two inches tall!

  A shadow falls over you. It’s the store guy’s hand, whipping down to swat you!

  Maybe he thinks you’re just another bug. Or maybe he knows exactly what you are, and he doesn’t want you to escape.

  Or maybe —

  SPLAT!

  THE END

  You shake a fist under Milo’s nose. “Okay, Milo, it’s over!” you yell. “Let us all go — or you’ll be sorry!”

  Milo just laughs! “No, you’ll be sorry! Don’t you know I’m a mutant? I can change into any kind of creature I want to be.” He gives you an evil smile. “Here’s one I call — the Glob!”

  The chest you’re sitting on starts to wobble like Jell-O. You gasp as Milo’s skin turns transparent.

  Then he dribbles bonelessly out of his clothes!

  Cammie and Jack leap back, screaming.

  You try to jump, too. But Milo’s new form oozes around your legs. He’s not just gooey, he’s gluey. You can’t get free of Milo’s slimy self!

  He’s up to your knees … your hips … now you’re almost completely covered by the Glob.

  Desperately, you try to peel Milo’s glob-form off yourself. “HELP!” you try to shriek. But your air is cut off.

  You look at your arm. Your flesh is beginning to blur.

  Milo is absorbing you!

  Too bad. You looooze this time!

  THE END

  Heart beating, you push past your friends — and into darkness. There’s not much room. You’re hemmed in tight. But you can see a light up ahead.

  You pay attention to nothing else, working toward it. The light becomes dazzling. Blindly, you shove
your way forward, feeling squashed and breathless.

  You can’t move! Are you trapped?

  With a desperate wriggle, you force yourself a few inches forward.

  Then, like a cork popping out of a bottle, you’re through!

  You tumble flat on your face. Rough concrete scratches against your cheek. You feel sun on your back. You’re free!

  Scrambling to your feet, you dash along a back alley and out into the street. “Help!” you yell. “Kidnapping! Monsters!”

  Passersby on the street turn around. You gape in horror.

  These people have skin like dark green leather. They have giant, honeycombed eyes. Like insects. And they don’t talk.

  They buzz!

  Buzz on to PAGE 16.

  Russell almost bursts into applause when you catch your ankle. “You’re just the person we need!” he cries. He turns to Bob. “Quick, get the others. We’ll be leaving right away!”

  Leaving? You were hoping you could stay at their camp. Somehow, it sounds safer than the rest of the maze.

  And another thing. “Why am I just the person you need?” you ask suspiciously.

  “Because of your size,” Russell answers. “Everybody in our group is too big.”

  A shiver runs down your spine. “Too big for what?” you want to know.

  Russell looks one way, then the other. He almost seems afraid he’ll be overheard. “We think we’ve found a way out of here!” he whispers. “But it will only work for a little person!”

  Turn to PAGE 5.

  By sheer luck, you grab hold of the waiting hands. The boy pulls you out of the way — just in time. You look down at the lion-bull creature’s furious eyes.

  “Missed me!” you shout.

  The creature roars as you swing down off the wall. A second later, the plywood wall seems to explode!

  You duck as pieces of heavy wood framing fly past. What a mess! A pile of wreckage covers the lion-bull creature. It must have rammed down the wall and crashed into the next one!

  “Help!” a voice cries.

  You turn to your rescuer — to find him pinned under a pile of wreckage!

  Pull him loose on PAGE 85.

  There’s something vibrating on your back. You crane to see over your shoulder.

  Wow! You’ve got wings! Giant, shimmering insect wings!

  You’re so astonished, you freeze. That includes your wings, which stop beating. Instantly, you drop about four feet.

  Lucky for you! A blast of energy sizzles right over your head. The blast-bolt! It explodes where you should have been.

  Your wings start to buzz again. You notice now that your body is encased in some kind of sparkling brown armor.

  Excellent! Your new “guest shot” has turned you into the star of the comic — Ballistic Bug!

  You zip around, ducking Dr. Doof’s blast-bolts. Then you realize: You can fight back! You’ve got other superpowers besides your insect wings.

  You’d like to try out your Insecto-Electric Hornet’s Sting. But you’re pretty far away from Dr. Doof.

  Should you try a blast from where you are? Or should you close in so your aim will be better?

  Turn to PAGE 56 for long-range sharpshooting.

  Turn to PAGE 92 to make it up close and personal!

  For the first time since touching that comic rack, you feel a little hope. “Could you really get me back home?”

  Loudsnore rubs his chin. “Well, I need to run some tests to see if your atomic composition is different from ours. And then there’s the effect of the transuniversal phlogiston….”

  You don’t understand a word the mad scientist is saying. But you’re eager to help. “Just tell me what to do,” you cry.

  Loudsnore points to a big metal box. “Climb in there.”

  In there? Maybe it’s your imagination, but the box looks like a big coffin. Is Loudsnore really trying to help you? Or is he trying to destroy you?

  “Isn’t there some other way you could make these tests?” you ask nervously.

  Loudsnore shrugs. “We could try the hazzafrazza device,” he says. He points to something that looks like a huge floodlight, dangling from the ceiling. “But I won’t get as good a reading.”

  Do you want to get into the coffin? Turn to PAGE 130.

  Do you want to try the hazzafrazza device? Go to PAGE 75.

  “Look, Doc,” you croak. “I’m sorry, okay?” Then you get a bright idea. “I’m in so many different series — I, uh, get mixed up sometimes about which script is which.”

  Dr. Doof scowls. “Sure, rub it in about how popular you are. I don’t know what all those fans see in you, with those stupid antennas sticking out of your helmet. Anybody with any brains could see I’ve got a cooler costume!”

  There’s one good thing about this weird situation. Dr. Doof seems like a reasonable guy — sort of. Once he calms down, you should be able to talk to him!

  Doof gives you one more shake, then sighs. “Well, we’ve got a job to do — unless you want to call a break.”

  To continue this phony fight, turn to PAGE 126.

  To take a break, go to PAGE 49.

  Whoa! Milo must have read your mind. And changed himself into your worst nightmare!

  His new body heaves and wobbles. He stares down at you through King Jellyjam’s gooshy yellow eyes.

  “Well?” he asks in a deep, gurgling voice. “What do you think? Am I scary enough?”

  You gag. You’d almost forgotten that King Jellyjam had disgusting bad breath. But Milo got it down perfectly.

  Your teeth are chattering so badly, you can’t answer right away. But that gives you a chance to think.

  Is Milo playing with you? Does he just want you to admit you’re scared before he does you in?

  On the other hand, Milo is in an unfamiliar body now. Maybe he doesn’t know how it works yet. Maybe you should try to beat him!

  If you admit that you’re scared, turn to PAGE 32.

  If you want to go up against Milo, turn to PAGE 14.

  The good news is that the pile of stuff on top of your new friend isn’t as large as the mound that buried the lion-bull creature.

  You start tossing aside the pieces of wreckage. It isn’t easy. The wooden beams that held up the walls are thicker than your arms. Big chunks of wood lie under smaller ones. You quickly learn this stuff can get heavy!

  “What’s your name?” you puff as you kick a ten-foot beam off to one side.

  “I’m Charlie,” the trapped boy replies. “There’s a bunch of us down here. If you meet my friends, tell them what happened to me. But get out of here,” Charlie begs. “Save yourself while you can!”

  “No!” you shout. “I’m going to help you, and that’s final!”

  Work your way to PAGE 121.

  You laugh to yourself as you run through the maze. Frankenstein may be strong, but he’s so slow! How did he ever catch people in the movies?

  The creature’s cries get even fainter as you pound along. Finally, at the end of a long hall, you stop to catch your breath.

  But you’ve only rested for a moment when a familiar shadow appears against the wall. A second later, Frankenstein comes staggering down the hall. His clawlike hands grope for you.

  “NYAAAAARRRRRRGH!” the creature cries.

  The scent of decaying meat fills your nose.

  He may be slow, but he’s still plenty scary. Shuddering, you dodge through the first doorway you see. Dashing down a new hall, you quickly outrun Frankenstein’s staggering steps.

  “Man!” you mutter. “That was too close! How did he catch up to me so quickly?”

  Then you get it. Of course. The creature lives in the maze! It knows all the shortcuts!

  Run to PAGE 71.

  You pound against the trick panel. It doesn’t budge! “Jack! Cammie!” you yell. “What’s going on?”

  They shout back, “We’ve never seen a wall like that before.”

  In spite of everything you do, the wooden panel stays st
uck.

  “Just keep going,” Cammie calls to you. “Sooner or later, the maze must come together again.”

  You go through the nearest door and into the hallway beyond, shouting to your friends. But after a few turns, their voices sound farther away. And then you can’t hear them at all.

  Then you hit another big room. It’s different from anything else you’ve seen in the maze. The floor is covered by a puddle, yards wide. There’s just a little bit of dry space by the walls. “What is that stuff?” you mutter. It looks like black ink!

  Hearing your name called, you look up. There’s a doorway at the other side of the room. And there are Jack and Cammie!

  “Come on!” Jack cries. “Let’s get out of here!”

  You could walk through the gloppy puddle. Or maybe you should try to edge around it, hugging the walls.

  If you walk straight through, go to PAGE 21.

  If you try going around, turn to PAGE 28.

  The footsteps get louder. Louder.

  And then one of Loudsnore’s horrible creations stomps in. It’s a dinosaur-like creature made of metal and plastic.

  And it looks a lot like your friend Wally.

  Loudsnore points at you. “Destroy this monster!” he orders the new creature. “But don’t hurt me.”

  “Don’t listen to him, Wally!” you shout. “He doesn’t really control you.”

  “Huh?” Wally’s glowing eyes look confused. “Hey! I’m not doing what he said. I guess he doesn’t control me.”

  You grin. “So, where were we?” you ask Loudsnore. “Oh, yes. You were giving me back my Super-Doer body — and de-monsterfying my friend, too.”

  Holding Loudsnore by the collar of his lab coat, you dangle him from your giant hand.

  “All right!” screams Loudsnore, clinging desperately to your fingers. “I’ll turn you both back!”

  Now he’s talking! Turn to PAGE 99.

  “Okay,” you tell yourself. “So I’m being followed through a dark maze. I should look on the bright side. Maybe whoever it is can show me the way out of here.”

  You turn back on your trail. As you do, you notice a nasty smell in the air. It reminds you of the time your uncle Mel left the bag of garbage in the kitchen when the family went on a two-week vacation. And it seems to be getting stronger.

  Uh-oh.

  You pop around a corner and into a room. Light pours through a second doorway. It throws a moving shadow on the wall.