by R. L. Stine
I leaned forward into the oars. I tried to concentrate on my rowing. Slow and steady. Slow and steady.
I let out a gasp as I realized the boat had sailed far from the shore.
We rocked up and down, heading toward the center of the lake … heading toward the pirate ship.
“Turn it! Turn it!” I called to Robby up front.
“I … can’t!” he cried. “Lizzy, I can’t control it.”
I sank my oars in and pulled … pulled. Straining to turn the boat back toward the shore.
But Robby was right. We weren’t controlling it.
It was like the boat had a mind of its own.
Was it on some kind of track? Was it programmed to sail back to the pirate ship?
Well, that’s where we were all heading. Both boats. We rocked wildly up and down — and sailed steadily in a straight line to the ship.
As we moved under the tall ship’s cold shadow, I saw the pirates on the deck. There were at least a dozen of them. Most were skeletons wearing dark jackets and ruffled shirts. Their clothes were stained and torn. The rotting shirts barely covered their bones.
Scraggly knots of long hair fell over their empty eye sockets. Clams and seashells clung to their scalps.
They leaned over the rail, watching, white bones glowing in the pale moonlight, ready to greet us.
“The bones they crack; the bones they creep.
The men come alive in the briny deep …”
The pirates chanted as they pulled us one by one from the longboats onto their deck. Chanted in a frightening, slow rhythm. Their voices were hoarse and dull, the voices of dead men. And I knew as long as I lived, I’d never forget the terrifying sound.
“Come with us; come with the men.
Come meet your fate with Captain Ben.”
The deck rocked gently in the water. We huddled together, staring at the grinning pirates.
Their bones clattered as they moved. Two of them had purple worms crawling in and out of their nostril holes. One of them still had some flesh on his face, sagging skin covered in green mold.
Matt stepped forward. “What do you want?” he demanded. “We’re not bothering you. Let us off this ship!”
The dead pirates uttered low grunts but didn’t reply. They formed a line to hold us in place. One of them scratched his scraggly hair — and it came off in his hand.
Another pirate started to make choking sounds. I gasped as he coughed up a big half-eaten snail and spit it onto the deck.
“Are you going to let us go?” Matt repeated.
Silence. The boat creaked beneath us.
I could hear the water lapping at the sides. And the hard thumping of my heartbeat.
The chanting voices still rang in my ears. And the dead stare from those deep, empty eye sockets was too horrifying to believe.
I shut my eyes. But the pirates wouldn’t go away.
“Can you take us to the other side?” Billy asked in a tiny, frightened voice. “We just want to get to the other side of the lake. Can you take us there?”
The pirates tilted their skulls back and laughed. Dry, choking laughter that sounded more like vomiting than laughing.
They stopped laughing suddenly. I heard scraping footsteps on the deck behind them. The pirates stumbled and staggered out of the way. They backed to the deck rail, their bones cracking and creaking.
A smiling pirate stepped forward, leaning on a crutch. He had a whole face, but his skin was wrinkled and flaky. As he came closer, I saw that his eyes were watery like poached eggs, and sunken deep in his head.
He wore a long black coat with gold buttons down the front. His sailor pants were nearly in shreds.
His wooden leg tapped the deck as he limped toward us. His thin mustache rose as a smile spread over his face. His teeth were ragged and brown.
“It’s Captain Ben,” Billy told the rest of us.
The pirate did a low bow. “At your service,” he rasped. His voice sounded as if it came from underwater.
His sunken eyes slid over us and stopped at Billy and Sheena. “Well, well, mates — here ye be again!” he boomed.
“Let us go!” Sheena cried. “We’re not here to bother you!”
Captain Ben snickered. “Here ye be again,” he repeated. His mustache rose up and down like a wriggling worm above his mouth.
“What do you want?” Billy demanded.
The pirate took a step closer. “The Menace promised us revenge,” he rasped.
“Who?” Billy and Sheena cried in unison.
“Who is The Menace?” Billy asked.
Captain Ben snickered again. “Too bad you won’t live long enough to find out.”
Leaning on his crutch, Captain Ben walked to the side of the deck. His men scrambled to get out of his way.
His wrinkled skin glowed in the moonlight. He grinned wider and pointed down to a narrow, flat board that stuck out over the edge of the ship.
“The plank,” he said. “What would a pirate ship be without a blessed plank — aye, mates?”
One of the pirates began to cough again. He choked up a decayed frog, pulled it out of his open mouth, and tossed it over the rail. I heard the soft splash down below.
“You’re all going to walk the plank at midnight,” Captain Ben rasped. His mustache slid up at both ends. “And guess what, mates? It’s midnight. It’s always midnight in The Midnight Maze.”
The pirates seemed to think that was very funny. They all snickered and coughed and shook their skinless skulls.
“The water be deep here, friends,” Captain Ben said, leaning on the rail. “Deep and cold. Too cold to survive for long.”
A chill ran down my back. My legs were trembling.
Was he serious? Did he really plan to make us all step off the deck and drop into the water?
I knew the answer. Of course he was serious. He was evil. And he was out for revenge.
The word revenge repeated in my mind. And in my fright, I began to put some pieces together.
Captain Ben was here for revenge against Billy and Sheena.
What about the Haunted Mask? The monsters from the eggs?
Were they also here for revenge? If they were, who brought them here? Who brought them all here together at the same time?
The same person who invited these Very Special Guests to HorrorLand?
I didn’t have any more time to think about it.
Two skeletal pirates grabbed Sheena by the arms. They dragged her across the deck to the plank.
Sheena screamed and tried to break free of the bony hands.
But the dead pirates were too strong. They lifted her onto the narrow plank.
Captain Ben raised his wet, eggy eyes to her. “The water be deep here, miss,” he said again. “If ye be a good swimmer, you might be able to swim halfway to land before the hungry crocs get you.”
Again, the dead pirates laughed and slapped each other as if the captain had made a hilarious joke.
And then the laughter stopped.
Two pirates gave Sheena a shove. She stumbled out onto the plank.
“Please — no!” she begged. “Please —”
“Let my sister go!” Billy screamed. He rushed at Captain Ben. But two pirates quickly blocked his path.
I saw Sheena’s knees wobble. She tumbled off the plank — and dropped straight down.
She screamed all the way down.
The splash sent a spray of water over the deck.
I turned and leaned over the rail. I gazed down at the water. Too dark. Too dark to see Sheena.
“Sheena! Sheena!” her brother, Billy, screamed down to her.
Silence. No reply.
Captain Ben tossed his head back and cackled. “Revenge be sweet, mates!” he boomed. “Who be next? How about the young brother here?”
A pirate grabbed Billy.
“No way!” Billy cried. He made a wild grab — and ripped away the pirate’s shirt. Pieces of skin clung to the pirate’s ribs.
Billy lowered his head and plowed into the dead man’s chest. But the pirate didn’t crumble or fall. Instead, he wrapped his bony arms around Billy and held him still.
“No! No! No!” Billy screamed, and struggled as the pirates pushed him onto the plank. Another shove — and his hands shot up above his head. His eyes widened in fright. And he went sailing off the end of the board.
Another loud splash sent a spray of water over all of us.
I stared down into the water far below us. I couldn’t see anything in the deep blackness.
Captain Ben cackled again. His sunken eyes sparkled with glee.
Abby splashed down next. Then Robby. Then Carly Beth.
I was trembling in fright. I hugged myself to try to stop shaking.
Luke leaned against me. He had tears running down his cheeks. “Lizzy —” he whispered. “Lizzy —”
He was too scared to talk.
I squeezed his hand. “We’re good swimmers — right?” I whispered. “We’ll swim out of this.”
“But — but the pirate said —”
One of the pirates grabbed my brother before he could finish. Luke tried to twist out of his grasp. But he lifted him off the deck and shoved him onto the plank.
I shut my eyes. I couldn’t bear to see my little brother fall.
I screamed when I heard the splash.
My scream of horror turned to anger. I balled my hands into fists — and rushed at the laughing pirate captain.
Startled, Captain Ben raised his crutch to shield himself.
I reached to grab it away from him. But two skeletal pirates tackled me and dragged me to the deck.
“No! NOOOOO!” Scream after scream burst from my throat.
And then bony hands lifted me onto the narrow plank.
And pushed me hard.
And I fell screaming into the dark water.
I hit the surface hard, sending up tall waves around me. The slap of the water stung my whole body.
I sucked in a big breath and held it as I sank quickly. The shock of the cold made my arms and legs go stiff.
My heart pounded. I could feel the blood pulsing at my temples.
Total panic. Total panic paralyzed me for a moment.
Then I finally raised my arms. Finally drew in my legs and kicked.
The lake was deeper than I’d thought. By the time I pulled myself to the surface, I was choking and gasping for breath.
Wiping water from my eyes, I gazed around wildly, searching for Luke.
Where was he? Where were the other kids?
Low waves tossed against the side of the pirate ship. “Hey!” I tried to call out. But panic choked my voice.
“Luke? Where are you? Luke?”
I gazed up at the wooden plank hanging over the deck high above me. I could hear the pirates’ raspy voices up there. Laughter. All muffled by the wind and the lapping water.
Everyone fell straight down from the plank. They had to be swimming nearby. Where were they?
Where?
“Luke!” I raised my face to the sky and shouted my brother’s name again. “Luke — where are you?”
Moonlight shimmered weakly on the dark waters. The lake was empty.
I’m the only one here, I told myself. And the terrifying thought made me want to scream. Or cry.
I’m the only one … the only one.
Did the other kids all DROWN?
Sucking in another deep breath, I dove deep underwater. And started to swim away from the shadow of the pirate ship.
Maybe the other kids were all ahead of me, swimming to the other side of the lake. I was the last one off the ship. Maybe I just couldn’t see them because they got a head start.
When I came back up to the top, a gust of wind sent a spray of water into my face. Sputtering, I spun around again. I shielded my eyes with my hand and squinted into the pale light.
I saw only the dark, calm water. Pale moonlight flickering on the surface.
No one.
I was all alone.
I opened my mouth to shout again. But before I could get a sound out, I felt a strong pull.
A strong pull from beneath me, pulling me down.
As if a powerful hand had wrapped around me and was tugging me, tugging me under with all its strength.
With a gasp, I flung my arms forward and kicked hard. Tried to pull myself free.
Such a powerful force. I was helpless. Going under.
Being pulled under. Deeper and deeper.
Like being sucked down a drain.
So THIS is what happened to the others!
My last thought before darkness overtook me.
My chest began to ache from holding my breath. I opened my eyes — and saw the muddy lake bottom float into view.
All the way down. I’d been pulled by an intense current all the way down.
In front of me, I gaped at an enormous black hole. A dark rectangle. The water pulled me to it … pulled me inside.
A tunnel, I realized. A long, narrow tunnel under the lake.
Did it lead anywhere? Did it lead back to the surface?
It didn’t matter. I had no choice. The powerful force had me in its grip. It was pulling me through the underwater passage. Pulling me faster and faster.
If only my lungs could hold out. If only my chest didn’t EXPLODE.
All my muscles tensed. I tightened my arms against my sides. And let the current pull me.
The ache from my chest spread over my body. Pain roared down my arms and back and legs. I knew I couldn’t hold my breath much longer.
And then a deafening WHOOSH startled me. I felt a strong push from behind.
And I went shooting up. I soared up through the narrow tunnel — and burst out of the water.
My breath came spilling out. Raising my head over the water, I sucked in breath after breath, wheezing, gasping hoarsely, my chest still throbbing.
I shook my head and wiped the water from my eyes. I spun around, struggling to see where I was.
“Hey —” Did I hear a voice?
I looked up — and saw someone waving to me from the dark shore. And then two other kids. And then some others pulling themselves from the water, stepping shakily onto the land.
“Luke!” I cried. “Luke!”
He was still in the water, up to his waist. I splashed over to him. “You’re okay!” I cried.
“I … guess so,” he said, his voice cracking. “I guess we made it, Lizzy.”
I grabbed his hand and helped pull him onto the sandy shore. “We made it! We made it!” I shouted.
The others all gathered around, shivering and shaking off water. I counted heads — sixteen of us. Everyone.
“We’re ALIVE! ALIVE!” Michael cried, thrusting his fists above his head.
We didn’t celebrate for long. We were too cold and wet. I felt exhausted, more tired than I’d ever felt.
I shivered. It wasn’t just the cold — it was also my fear.
Hugging myself, I turned to the water. I could see the hulking blackness of the pirate ship, tilting in the middle of the lake.
“We’re on the other side of the lake,” Carly Beth said, squeezing water from her hair. “That underwater tunnel must be part of the maze. It brought us to where we wanted to go.”
I turned and saw the walls of tall hedges. “That must be where the maze continues,” I said.
“Maybe we’re near the end,” Abby said wearily. “I … I’m so tired. I don’t know how much longer …” Her words ended in a sob.
Julie hugged her. “We’ll help each other,” she told Abby. “We’ll get through this maze. Byron said we could do it. And he said it would lead us back to HorrorLand.”
Without another word, we turned and started to follow the path between the hedges. Luke and I walked side by side, keeping our eyes straight ahead.
“We’ve been in this maze for hours,” he murmured. “It has to end soon — doesn’t it?”
“I hope so,” I said. �
�I … I’m never going to another scary movie as long as I live!”
That made Luke laugh. “Yeah. And no more scary books or scary video games!” he said.
We both laughed.
“When we get home, we’ll spend all our time watching SpongeBob and the Disney Channel,” Luke said. “From now on —”
“Wait, Luke —” I said. I held him back and pointed. “Look — is that the end of the maze?”
“Whoa!”
“Check it out!”
We all stopped. The hedge walls ended a few yards in front of us. And beyond them, we could see bright gray light.
Warm air floated in from the wide opening at the end of the hedges. I took a long, deep breath. And then I started to run with the others.
As we came bursting out of the maze, a large black-and-white sign came into view. Actually, it was a big banner, spread across a brick wall.
In big, bold letters, the banner read: WELCOME TO HORRORLAND!
We all cheered and screamed. We jumped up and down and slapped high fives and pumped our fists in the air in triumph.
I hugged Luke. We cheered and laughed.
Over Luke’s shoulder, I saw five or six big Horrors thundering toward us.
“Yes! Yes!” I screamed happily. “We made it! We’re BACK!”
The green-and-purple Horrors roared up to us, their big feet slapping the pavement. Their furry chests were bare under the dark overalls they wore. Curled horns poked up from their heads and caught the glare of the bright light.
We stopped cheering. The Horrors didn’t look like a welcoming committee.
Their eyes were narrowed coldly on us. Their faces were set in scowls and ugly frowns.
As they came near, they formed a line. They spread their big arms, as if ready to grab us or keep us from escaping.
“Hey — we came back!” Matt shouted.
“We’re back in HorrorLand!” Carly Beth exclaimed.
The Horrors didn’t answer. They scowled at us in silence.
Suddenly, I knew that something was very wrong.
The Horrors were in color, all purple and green. But as I glanced around, I saw that the rest of the park was in black and white. All shades of black and gray.
