Phaser Fight
Page 3
As bad as it tastes, it makes you feel even worse! You start to sweat, your tongue swells up, you can hardly breathe—and then you suddenly collapse in a heap!
If you have the nerve, turn to page 63.
Page 52
“If only we had a little more time” you think to yourself:
You’re stunned when the alien says, “A voice! I haven’t heard a sound since all my people died of this dread disease. I am the last one left. But who are you?”
“I am an ensign on the Starship Enterprise.” You reply in your thoughts.
Something in Dr. McCoy’s serum has given you a mental link to the alien. You’ve got to use your ability to communicate with this creature to save the Enterprise and its crew. But how?
Should you try to stall the alien long enough for Dr. McCoy to make a new serum? Or, if you don’t think you can keep it at bay, should you try to trick the alien so that the Enterprise can make a run for it?
If you try to stall for more time, turn to page 67.
If you try to trick the alien, turn to page 76.
Page 53
You aim at the ceiling. Blam…blam…blam! One after another, you shoot out the lights, plunging the room into total darkness.
A moment later, a security detail opens the door, flooding the room with light from the corridor. But the aliens are gone!
Mr. Spock picks himself up off the floor and says. Mirrors only live when there is light for them to reflect.” And then he adds. “And I live only because of your quick thinking.”
“Then would you do me a small favor?” you ask as the security detail grabs you. “Would you tell these guys to let me go?”
The head of the security detail announces, “We’re going to throw the book at you for escaping from sickbay!”
“On the contrary,” says Spock, “we’re going to throw a Federation Medal at him You’re looking at the hero who saved the Enterprise!”
The End
Page 54
You squeeze McCoy’s nose—and he yelps in surprise, letting go of you! You take a deep breath and then call out for help.
Aging members of an Enterprise security detail rush into the small cubicle and help you tie McCoy down to his bed.
Bones looks like a monster, but as you watch him lying there, you realize that he’s stopped aging? The cure must be very close!
You lean near the strapped-down doctor and whisper, “What should I do?”
In a rasping, wild voice, McCoy struggles to find his sanity long enough to answer. “The formula is right!” he finally replies, “It’s the dosage that’s wrong!”
“Should I give the crew more or less than you took?” you ask.
McCoy can’t hold onto his human side any longer. He suddenly howls with rage, trying to rip the straps that hold him down.
It’s useless trying to talk to him. You must choose the right dosage yourself.
If you give the crew half as much as McCoy took, turn to page 102.
If you give the crew twice as much as McCoy took, turn to page 104.
Page 55
When the Enterprise reaches the planet, you join Captain Kirk, Mr. Spock, and Dr. McCoy in the transporter room. But just as you’re about to beam down, a voice is piped over the communication system.
“This is Professor Jinks,” says the voice. “Who are you, and why are you orbiting my planet?”
“This is the Starship Enterprise.” Kirk replies. “We’re a bit surprised to hear from you, Professor, because we didn’t pick up any life forms on your planet.”
“Well, I’m very much alive.” laughs Professor Jinks. “So why don’t you just run along now.”
Turn to page 65.
Page 56
You and Mr. Spock don’t waste any time. But just as the two of you are about to beam your selves back to the Enterprise, a red light on the transporter begins to blink.
“What is it?” you ask the Science Officer. “What’s wrong with it?”
“The transporter is designed to give a warning if one of its parts is nearing a malfunction. In other words, if we try to beam ourselves over to the Enterprise now, we might be committing suicide.”
Should you risk using the transporter? Or should you try to find some other way of getting hack to the Enterprise?
If you risk using the transporter, beam yourself over to page 75.
If you want to find another way back to the Enterprise, turn to page 86.
Page 57
“Make another hatch?” shouts Bones, after you make your suggestion. “Are you out of your mind? There isn’t time for that. The whole ship is coming down with the disease!”
He’s right. Even though Captain Kirk refuses to leave the bridge, you can hear the age in his voice when he tries to calm the crew over the communication system.
“I guess you’re right,” you admit, as you begin to reach for the test tube. But before you get your hands on it, Dr. McCoy picks it up first and swallows every drop of the serum!
“I’ll be the guinea pig,” says Bones. But before he can give you any further instructions, he suddenly passes out!
Will the serum work?
Find out on page 74.
Page 58
The ship is beginning to come apart at the seams!
“Reduce speed to Warp 2!” orders the captain.
You don’t need to he told twice. You carefully reduce the ship’s speed—and realize that you’ve flown through the debris from the shattered meteor, right out into clear, wide open space. You’re safe!
Except your adventure has only just begun…
Turn to page 69.
Page 59
You fire at the glass creatures, but your blast merely reflects off their mirrorlike surface and it comes flying hack at you! You crumple to the ground, stunned!
While you lie there, the strange aliens pour aboard the Enterprise taking it over.
“Reflect” on that for a while—and then close the book.
The End
Page 60
“What’s this all about?” McCoy asks the head of the security team when they drag you into sickbay.
“Looks like the young ensign couldn’t stand the strain,” says the head of the team.
“Is that true?” demands the doctor.
“I can explain everything,” you shout just a little bit wildly. “You’ve just got to believe me. The fate of the Enterprise may hang in the balance!”
Dr. McCoy dismisses the guards. You tell him what happened, but when you’re finished he doesn’t seem to buy it. “If you don’t believe me, ask Mr. Spock!” you insist.
“Oh. I believe you,” says McCoy, patting you on the shoulder. “You just lie still now.”
Does he really mean that, or is he just humoring you so he can knock you out with a needle?
If you think Dr. McCoy believes you, turn to page 71.
If you think McCoy is just humoring you, turn to page 3.
Page 61
After you’re thrown into the Laser prison, Spock points at the two guards who look just like him and says, “They’re duplicators.”
“What do you mean?” you ask in confusion.
“These aliens copy almost everything—your body, your face—but most of all, your energy. And their ship duplicates, too. Didn’t you notice their bridge?”
“It was kind of familiar,” you admit. “More than familiar. It was exactly the same as the Enterprise!” says Spock. “But more important, they’re duplicating the power of the Enterprise taking on its energy!”
“How can we stop them?” you ask. “Actually, it’s very simple,” he begins. “Indeed, it’s perfectly logical. Except first we have to escape from here—and we’ve got to do it right away!”
But before he can tell you his plan, Spock is suddenly taken away to be interrogated.
Should you wait until he returns before you try to get away? Or should you try to escape now on your own?
If you decide to wait for Spock, turn to
page 41.
If you try to escape now, turn to page 35.
Page 62
You dive into the transporter room, roll over twice, and come up on your hands and knees with your phaser pointed at an alien who has Mr. Spock by the throat.
In a voice that sounds like fingernails on a chalkboard, the alien holding Spock says, “If you shoot at us, we will kill your friend!”
“Looks like you were planning on killing him anyway,” you reply.
The alien laughs. Or at least it sounds like a laugh. But out of its mouth shoots a beam of red light! You roll out of the way as the light burns the floor where you were lying. Then the other aliens open their mouths and more beams of red light flash toward you. You haven’t got a chance, but you figure you’ll take at least one of them with you, so you fire your phaser as you roll out of the way.
Keep rolling to page 89!
Page 63
As you lie unconscious on the floor, your mind is filled with a vivid image. In a sky full of swirling stars, you see a huge green hand reach out to crush the Enterprise!
The picture you see seems remarkably real. You hear a voice in your brain saying. “The disease must be destroyed. And anyone infected by it must also die before it can spread!”
You might be having a simple nightmare, or you might be getting a glimpse into the future.
What do you think it is?
If you think you’re simply dreaming, turn to page 78.
If you think this is a glimpse into the future, turn to page 85.
Page 64
The Enterprise is streaking toward the center of the black hole at Warp 18! Warp 19! Warp 20!
The ship enters the black hole. You’ve gone where no man has gone before. But it’s as far as you’re going to get. The theory that you can come out the other end of a black hole if you enter it fast enough is just that: a theory. The fact, however, is that the Enterprise is squished so small that you couldn’t even find it under a microscope!
As you can imagine, it’s hard to hold a hook in your hands when you’re that tiny. Putting it another way; the book goes on, but you don’t.
The End
Page 65
Kirk ignores the professor. “Request permission to beam down,” says the captain.
“Well, if you must,” sighs Jinks. “The planet’s surface is a little tricky, so to be safe, you ought to beam down to the following coordinates: 33.51.62.”
“That’s solid rock,” says Mr. Spock to the captain.
“I know” Kirk agrees.
“We don’t have any reason to believe that Professor Jinks is lying,” McCoy reminds the captain and Spock.
What do you think? Should you trust Jinks?
If you trust Jinks, turn to page 82.
If you don’t trust Jinks, turn to page 87.
Page 66
Almost positive that Spock said, “Jam up the transporter,” you immediately begin pulling wires out of the mechanism. But it’s too late. Before you can tear out the guts of the machinery, three life forms from the phantom ship beam aboard—and all three of them look exactly like Spock!
Turn to page 80.
Page 67
“The only way to stop the disease is to kill the carriers,” announces the alien. “It’s for the good of all living creatures that I must condemn you to death.”
It starts to pound on the shields of the Enterprise.
“Wait!” you cry. “How long have you been fighting this disease?”
The alien stops to consider. “Well, now, that’s a tough one. It’s been—let me see—just slightly over thirty-one million years, give or take a few dozen centuries.”
“Thirty-one million years,” you repeat. “And you can’t give us a lousy half an hour? Now is that fair?”
“Hmmmm,” ponders the alien. “I suppose you’ve got a point.”
Turn to page 72.
Page 68
Well, you’re ready for almost anything.
Five sets of arms wrestle you to the deck. Before you can fire your phaser, it’s grabbed out of your hands. You’re a prisoner now, just like Spock.
But where is the Vulcan? You look around the bridge—and that’s when you realize that everybody there looks exactly like you!
One of your doubles makes several squeaking noises—that’s their language—and then you’re roughly hauled to your feet. You’re taken to a prison made of deadly light from a laser. Spock is waiting there. But outside the prison are two guards—and as incredible as it seems, those two jailors look exactly like Spock!
“What’s going on here?” you demand.
Find out on page 61.
Page 69
Where did those meteors come from? And since when can they get through a starship’s shields? Something strange is going on.
“Captain,” reports Chekov, in a surprised voice, “I’m picking up the presence of a planet just two parsecs away. The odd thing, sir, is that our computer records show no such planet!”
“I wouldn’t be surprised if those meteors and our mystery planet have something in common,” says Kirk. “Let’s go check it out. Plot a course to that planet, Ensign.” the captain orders you.
Plot a course to page 5.
Page 70
The Klingons are surprised by your maneuver. Their fleet can’t turn after you that sharply, and they sweep into the meteor belt!
You intercept one of their garbled radio transmissions: “Commander to base. We blundered into the synthetic meteor belt that we created to destroy Federation starships. The planet from which they were launched is now unprotected, and our own secret weapon is going to destroy us!”
The Klingon fleet is totally decimated. But more important, now that you know the secret behind the mystery planet, you plot a new course there and blow the Klingon base into a billion pieces!
And you? Well, you showed the Klingons that you possess the greatest secret weapon of all: brains!
The End
Page 71
Thank goodness Dr. McCoy believes you. You close your eyes and sigh with relief. But then, an instant later you feel the slight tick of a laser needle piercing your skin!
You’ll never know what happens next, because you sleep right through it. Good night!
The End
Page 72
You convinced the alien to give you thirty more minutes, but will you have a cure that soon? You ask Bones, who replies, “We’ll try. What have we got to lose?”
It’s a race against the clock—in more ways than one. But suddenly Bones, who is now roughly ninety years old, begins to lose his memory! “I’ve made the formula,” he says helplessly, “but I can’t remember if I’m supposed to beat it or cool it!”
It’s up to you. Heat or cool? And there’s only one minute left!
If you choose to heat the serum, turn to page 110.
If you choose to cool the serum, turn to page 118.
Page 73
The alien asked you a question in its squeak language—and he’s waiting for an answer.
What are you going to do?
Should you respond by making some kind of squeaking sound yourself, and hope that your answer makes sense? Or should you simply shake your head, and hope that your unspoken “no” will do the trick?
Your life depends on what you do next. Good luck!
If you reply with a squeak of your own, turn to page 84.
If you reply by shaking your head “no” turn to page 9.
Page 74
You lay Dr. McCoy out in an isolation cubicle and carefully watch him, looking for any signs that the aging process has stopped. As you scratch your long beard, you think you see something!
McCoy’s skin is much smoother, the gray is leaving his hair, and his body seems to be getting straighter. The serum not only stopped the disease, it seems to be reversing it!
It looks like Dr. McCoy’s concoction is a huge success. It takes you no time at all to mix more of the serum. But Bones hasn’t awaken
ed yet, and that worries you. You don’t know yet if the drug has any side effects.
Should you ignore your concerns and give the serum to the rest of the crew? Or should you wait a little longer, until you see if anything else happens to Dr. McCoy?
It’s a tough decision. But no one else can make it except you!
If you give out the serum now, turn to page 81.
If you wait before giving out the serum, turn to page 10.
Page 75
“The warning light is telling us that the transporter might break,” you point out to Spock. “But it isn’t broken yet. The odds ought to be in our favor that it’ll work long enough to get us home. Besides, what other way do we have of getting back to the ship?”
“You make a logical argument.” he admits.
“Are you sure you aren’t part Vulcan?”
The two of you prepare to beam over to the
Enterprise. You know that you’re taking a risk. But reason and logic seem to be on your side. With the red warning light flashing, you beam yourselves home…you hope.
Discover your fate on page 92.
Page 76
“Hey; you’d better move your hand away from the ship,” you tell the alien, “because we’ve already decided to blow ourselves up.”