Little Comic Shop of Horrors

by R. L. Stine

  You’re going to fight! Even though it takes all your courage just to gaze at Milo’s new, rubbery face.

  You try to remember the story you read. The girl who told the story managed to defeat King Jellyjam. But how? Terror has got your mind all mixed up.

  Did she push King Jellyjam into an oven? No, that was the ending to an old fairy tale.

  The gross purple face snorts at you. Your stomach gurgles at the sour stink of bad breath. Is that what destroyed King Jellyjam? Did he suffocate from his own smell?

  Think! How would you destroy a huge purple body? One that looks just like a slime-filled balloon? Did the girl in the story poke King Jellyjam so he popped?

  Those big yellow eyes are getting a nasty look. Time to decide!

  Do you poke King Jellyjam? Turn to PAGE 8.

  Do you try to suffocate the giant creature? Turn to PAGE 11.

  When you shout the magic words, the universe does another quick change. You spin through the air. Incredible brightness glares around you. Then you thud to the floor.

  You shake your head to clear your brain. You seem to be on a stage. You must be in an old theater, or something. The blazing light comes from the fist of a man wearing black armor, goggles, and a metal face mask.

  It’s Dr. Doof! One of the greatest mad scientists in comics! He’s also Ballistic Bug’s worst enemy.

  And right now he’s aiming his armored fists at you. Uh-oh! That means he’s going to zap you with a blast-bolt!

  Your brain is frozen with fear, so your body takes over on instinct. The gentle hum you’ve been noticing in the background rises into a frantic whine. Then you take off in flight!

  Hey! How’d you do that?

  Find out on PAGE 81.

  You jump back with a horrified scream. These creatures aren’t human! They’re … bugs!

  Oddly enough, when they see you, the bug-people leap back, too. They raise sticklike arms in front of their faces. Their buzzing suddenly becomes very shrill.

  I must look as scary to them as they do to me! you realize. Fighting back your own terror, you manage a friendly smile. What do good aliens say in sci-fi comics? Oh, right.

  “I come in peace,” you call.

  Too bad the bug-people don’t speak English. Their buzzing rises to a shriek as you walk toward them. You grab your ears at the shrill sounds of hundreds of alien screams. It’s worse than the whine of a dentist’s drill!

  Ouch! Go to PAGE 93.

  You turn anxiously to the rest of Y’s Guys. Wolfen-Bean, the Fighting Vegetable, and Stinky Stanley look confused. So does Jean Greene. You’re not sure what her power is, but you know it involves coming back from the dead.

  They’re all fierce fighters. What will they do if they discover you’re the alien Professor Y is talking about?

  “Can you tell us more about these visitors?” you ask.

  “Yeah, Professor,” Jean Greene pipes up. “How do we know they’re evil?”

  “Sure,” Wolfen-Bean chimes in. “Maybe they’re just lost, or something.”

  “This isn’t something to vote over,” Professor Y growls. “My marvelous mind powers warn me of danger.” He closes his eyes as though he’s listening to a tiny voice.

  Then his eyes open wide. “One of the invaders is in this very room! He must be a shape-shifter!”

  “Um, Professor,” you begin.

  Professor Y whips around, pointing. “You’re the one!”

  Find out who he’s pointing at on PAGE 134.

  A big gob of goo flies from the creature’s mouth. It misses you, but lands on the wall behind you. Immediately, the plywood starts to bubble and hiss! The thing’s spit must be acid! If it had touched you …

  “Run!” Russell shouts.

  Alicia drags you around the corner. After a couple of minutes of running, the group slows down. “It’s dangerous, but it’s not fast,” Alicia pants.

  Ahead, Russell and Bob are arguing in whispers. Russell turns to all of you. “The Spitter is blocking the path we planned to take,” he explains. “I think we should circle around it even though that means spending more time in the Danger Zone.” He points at a doorway in the plywood wall. “But Bob thinks we can cut through here. The problem is, none of us have been through this part of the maze before.”

  Russell looks at your little group. “We’ll take a vote. Which way do you want to go?”

  If you go along with Russell, turn to PAGE 24.

  If you think Bob has a better idea, turn to PAGE 128.

  I hope I’m doing the right thing, you think. Wings buzzing, you flash toward the Doorway to Anywhere.

  Darkness swallows you up. You feel a terrible chill. Invisible forces seize your body and hurl you through the blackness.

  And then … the blackness isn’t so total. In fact, it’s more like gray. You’re in a large, shadowy room. Nearby, you see a spinner rack full of comics.

  The Doorway to Anywhere has dumped you back in the comic shop where it all started!

  Your wings buzz with joy —

  Wings?

  Hey! You’re still Ballistic Bug! You still have your superpowers!

  Excellent!

  You fly to the front of the shop to confront the weird-looking guy behind the counter. This is his store, after all. Whatever is going on, he must know about it. And you’ve got a lot of questions you want answered!

  Charge onward to PAGE 76.

  You wait for a long time. Just when you’re about to give up and wander off, Bob returns with another older boy. “This is Russell,” he says.

  The big boss is tall and skinny, with thick glasses. As he gazes down at you, you’re reminded of a stork you once saw in a zoo.

  Russell bursts into a big smile. “Perfect, Bob!” he exclaims. “Just the right size.”

  You don’t like the sound of that. Your Uncle Mel always says the same thing about the turkey at Thanksgiving dinner. “What am I perfect for?” you demand.

  “I can’t tell you — yet,” Russell says mysteriously. “Anyway, I’ve got to test you first.”

  “Test me?” you cry in disbelief.

  “Yes,” Russell goes on. “I want you to bend your right leg up till you can catch hold of your ankle with your right hand.”

  “Are you serious?” you demand.

  “Totally,” Russell replies. “Do it, or you don’t get in.”

  You heard Russell. Standing on one leg, bend your right foot back and try to catch your ankle.

  If you succeed, turn to PAGE 79.

  If you fail, turn to PAGE 133.

  “I’m there!” you call, sloshing through the puddle. The mystery goo is barely an inch deep, but it gushes stickily under your shoes as you walk. Ugh!

  “Let’s book,” you say the moment you reach your friends.

  Whew! Okay, you’re still lost in the Danger Zone. But at least you’re all together again.

  Keeping an eye out for traps, the three of you go onward. You’re starting to wonder about this Danger Zone, though. “So what’s so dangerous?” you ask Cammie and Jack.

  Like an answer, a weird snuffling sound comes from the distance. You don’t know what it is. And you don’t want to know what makes it. You, Cammie, and Jack start walking faster.

  But the noise behind you comes closer and closer.

  “Is it sniffing out our trail?” you ask worriedly.

  Cammie peers over her shoulder. “It doesn’t have to!”

  Glancing back the way you came, you groan. Stretching behind you is a trail … of big gooey black footprints!

  Thinking fast, you run to a doorway, leaving a clear trail. Then you kick off your shoes and toss them as far as you can!

  “Quick. Go the other way!” you whisper.

  Rush to PAGE 9!

  “Okay, I’m ready,” you declare.

  Tex Loudsnore’s test tube crashes down. New puffs of smoke explode around you. You’re surrounded by a rainbow-colored cloud.

  It feels as though a giant hand has land
ed on the top of your head. Down, down you go, pushed by this invisible hand. Your bones seem to grind together. Your muscles feel as if they’re snapping.

  Every nerve in your body is screaming in pain!

  I never should have trusted Tex Loudsnore! you think in horror. He just whipped up a potion to destroy me!

  Is this the end? Find out on PAGE 98!

  “What’s the Danger Zone?” you ask. “And how could it be worse than a maze full of monsters?”

  Jack only shakes his head. “No one knows,” he replies. “Nobody’s ever come out to tell us.”

  Yikes! You shiver. “So how do we get out?”

  “I bet we aren’t in it yet,” Cammie argues. “After all, somebody marked this doorway with the sign.” She taps the scratched D. “That must mean that it leads into the Danger Zone, and we should stay away.”

  Jack peeks around the doorway. “Hey!” he bursts out. “There’s a mark on the other side of the door, too. That means that this side leads to the Danger Zone, too.”

  Jack and Cammie begin to argue again.

  Sighing, you lean back against the plywood wall to rest your feet.

  But when your shoulders hit the wood, the panel suddenly gives under your weight! It twirls around like a revolving door and dumps you on the other side!

  Spin over to PAGE 87.

  You trust Russell. After all, he’s the leader. Alicia and Dan agree. The group starts to circle around. But after the first set of zigzags, Russell stops. “Spiderwebs,” he whispers.

  What’s the big deal? you wonder. Spiders aren’t so scary, compared to the maze monsters.

  You peek around the corner — and gasp. The whole hallway is blocked by a giant spiderweb! Sitting in the middle, its eyes gleaming, is a spider the size of a German shepherd.

  The group sneaks away and tries another path. You walk and turn, turn and walk….

  At last you come to a room that’s different from the rest. The far wall isn’t plywood — it’s brick!

  Russell climbs on Bob’s shoulders. He pries out a few of the bricks. Hey, there’s a hole in the wall. A tunnel!

  High above, you see a gleam of bright sunlight.

  Everyone turns to you. “It’s up to you,” Russell tells you solemnly. “You’re the only one who can save us.”

  Turn to PAGE 78.

  You float in the air in front of the metal monster’s face. It sort of looks like Wally, except for the size — and the flashing glass eyes, the metal scales, and the giant teeth.

  And, it certainly sounds like Wally — only louder.

  “I can’t believe that the first time you switch, you become a hotshot superhero,” he whines.

  “Guess I’m just lucky,” you reply. “But you shouldn’t feel too bad. Being a monster is better than being a stupid sidekick.”

  “True,” Wally agrees. “It is cool being a giant monster.” A huge hand flashes forward to pluck you out of the air. “Because this monster gets to do you in.”

  “Funny, Wally.” You laugh. “Remember, I’m Super-Doer.”

  You flex your supermuscles to get free.

  Nothing happens. You’re still trapped in the Wally-monster’s gigantic hand!

  Yikes! Turn to PAGE 46!

  You glance around the building site. There’s a pile of bricks, there’s a cement mixer — and there’s a bunch of those steel rods they use to strengthen concrete! Exactly what you were looking for!

  You pick up a heavy bar, flex your mighty muscles …

  Yes! The steel bends like thin wire.

  “Hey!” a voice yells.

  You glance up. A guy in a hard hat is glaring at you. “We were going to use that bar,” he complains. “Now you’ve ruined it!”

  You try to straighten it out. But you can’t fix that last kink. Then an idea comes to you.

  “I’ll just heat this up with my magma-vision,” you announce. You stare at the bent bar cross-eyed, the way Super-Doer does in the comics. Sure enough, the metal gets hot — too hot! The middle of the bar melts away!

  Whoops! Guess you need to practice with your cool new powers.

  The workman looks pretty angry. But then he’s distracted by a sudden burst of crashes and screams. Another guy in a hard hat dashes up. “Super-Doer!” he cries. “Some horrible creature is trying to knock down our building!”

  Leap into action on PAGE 59.

  Bob jumps again, and you help him over.

  “Get down!” he whispers.

  But at that moment, the beast arrives. You freeze in terror.

  Now you know what was making that weird rustling noise.

  The creature has the body of a giant snake. But its head is human.

  Sort of.

  In place of hair, hundreds of tiny snakes wriggle on its scalp!

  A hand grabs your ankle and yanks you down. Bob drags you along in silence through several corridors. Then he finally speaks up. “Pretty awful, huh? That’s probably the most dangerous monster in the maze. It wraps around you, crushing every bone in your body. Then it swallows you. Whole!”

  Turn to PAGE 6.

  “I don’t want to get this black gunk on my shoes,” you declare. “Hold on a minute.”

  You creep along the edge of the big, black puddle. Your back is right against the splintery wooden wall.

  About halfway around the puddle, you notice bubbles rising from the gluey goo. As they pop, they let out a horrible stink.

  P-U! You squinch up your eyes and hold your nose.

  Bad move! You should have kept an eye on the puddle. When you look again, a large, scaly head is rising from the glop.

  That puddle must be a lot deeper than you thought!

  A pale green forked tongue flicks out and wraps around your ankle. You can’t pull loose!

  Desperately, you claw at the plywood wall. But there’s nothing to hold on to. And Cammie and Jack are too far away to help. You’re dragged into the oily black goo.

  You’ve got a sinking feeling. As your head goes under the surface, you realize: You’re licked!

  THE END

  You gulp. Now you wish you hadn’t been so eager to volunteer. But it’s too late to back out. Bob appears with two more bigger kids — Dan and Alicia. “Let’s go!” he exclaims.

  The five of you set off. They keep you in the middle. You feel happy about that. Then you realize your new “friends” have a reason for keeping you safe. You’re the only one who’ll fit through Russell’s way out.

  You wind through the maze. Bob leads, his slingshot ready. Everybody glances nervously around.

  Then you hear a loud squishing sound.

  “Oh, no!” Russell cries. “It’s found us!”

  Around the corner comes another horrible creature. This one has the body of a slug and a head like a giant squid!

  Alicia grabs you as the thing rears back — and spits!

  Turn to PAGE 18.

  “Doc! You’ve got to listen to me!” you croak. “I’m not who you think I am! I’m not Ballistic Bug!”

  “Sure,” Dr. Doof sneers. “You’re actually the Queen of the May — and I’m the King of Albania!”

  “Listen, you idiot!” you rasp. “I’m — urk!”

  The armored gloves tighten on your throat. Too late, you realize this wasn’t the time to go insulting Dr. Doof.

  Frantically, you wave your hands, trying to get him to let go. Instead, the pressure just increases.

  There’s no talking to him. You’ll have to use the magic words and find another, friendlier, mad scientist.

  Your lips form the words, “Guest shot!” But you never speak them. Neither words — nor air — can get out of you.

  No air can get in, either! Your lungs ache. Spots dance before your eyes. You’re losing consciousness — fast.

  Well, at least, you’ve learned one lesson.

  Mad scientists get mad very, very easily!

  THE END

  You flutter your wings and arrow up into the darkness.

 
; “Wait! Where are you going?” Dr. Doof cries.

  “I’m going to see if I can get away!” you answer.

  You fly higher. You still don’t see anyone.

  “Hey! Hey!” you yell. “If there’s anyone up there, listen! I’m not really Ballistic Bug. I’m just a kid! A kid who got trapped in a magic comic shop!”

  You’re gasping from the effort of flying so high and so fast. White spots form before your eyes.

  Wait a minute — they’re not spots. They’re stars!

  You’re out of time, out of air … and out of luck. You’re already plummeting back to Earth as you black out.

  Next month, the new issue of Ballistic Bug is due to hit the stands. But when Horace Grumbacher arrives at his favorite comic shop to buy the new comic, it isn’t there!

  “Ballistic Bug has gone out of print,” the store owner explains. “But listen, kid. I’ve got a great new comic for you. The superhero is called the Powerful Pancake!”

  He holds up a copy of a comic book with a squashed-looking superhero on the front. A superhero that looks a lot like you….

  Too bad. What a flat ending to your story!

  THE END

  “O-okay, I give,” you croak. “You’re scary.”

  The mutated Milo-monster grabs you with huge purple hands. Stinking slime oozes over you as he holds you in front of his face. His yellow eyes blaze.

  “You’re sure?” he demands. “You’re sure I’m scary?”

  You can’t answer, because you’re holding your breath. Boy, does he reek! The sour stench washes over you. You can feel it on your face. It stings. Like acid.

  Milo shakes you. “Answer me!” his monster voice booms.

  “Yes!” you scream. “Yes, I’m sure you’re scary!”