Trapped in Bat Wing Hall Read online

  It gives you an idea. The idea is dangerous and very risky — but if it works, it might save your life.

  What is your idea? Find out on PAGE 121.

  “I don’t believe it!” Lara shrieks, pointing at you.

  You realize you and Lara are eye-to-eye. That’s a promising sign. With your heart pounding, you dare to glance down at your feet. Where only a moment ago you had claws, now you see your favorite sneakers. Hooray!

  You’re a kid again!

  “We did it!” Marcie cries.

  “Welcome back!” Lara says. “What was it like being a bat?”

  “How did it happen?” Martin wants to know.

  You don’t even know where to begin.

  Besides, you’re sick of the whole thing. You don’t want to even think about flying or eating bugs or hanging upside down.

  “I promise I’ll tell you all about it,” you tell them. “But not now. It will be my scary story the next time the Horror Club meets.”

  THE END

  There’s no sign of your backyard, and you don’t recognize any of the houses. And where is the crypt? You don’t have a clue.

  To make things worse, your bat eyes don’t see well enough to help you figure out where you are.

  But your ears are a different matter. You were working so hard learning to fly, you didn’t pay much attention to your bat hearing. But now you notice that it’s excellent.

  In fact, it’s so good that if you really concentrate, you can get a clear picture of the things making sounds around you.

  Off to the right, you hear a big moth flapping its wings. The flapping sounds like soft clapping. Somehow, the sound gives you a complete image of the moth. Below you, the loud humming of a mosquito sounds like a jet taking off.

  This is pretty cool!

  Now your super-sharp ears hear something more familiar. Something that might help you figure out where you are. You turn toward the sound. You see a man and a woman walking a small dog in the early-morning darkness.

  If you ask the couple for help, turn to PAGE 54.

  Or if you decide to fly off on your own, soar to PAGE 70.

  You’ve decided to climb into the crypt through the hole. The stone wall looks way too heavy to budge. The crypt is covered with thick carvings, so it’s easy to climb up to the top. You push your arms and head into the hole and start to wriggle through.

  It’s so dark inside, you can’t see a thing. As soon as you get your shoulders through, you hear a sound that makes you freeze.

  SCRUNK! SCRUNK! It sounds as if something slimy is climbing up the wall toward you. And now you hear another sound — a low moan. There’s a moaning something climbing your way.

  Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea.

  You try to wriggle back out — but discover you’re stuck!

  SCRUNK! SCRUNK! The moaning thing is coming closer.

  You push and pull. You twist and turn. Nothing. You can’t budge.

  “Help!” you scream. “Help!” Your voice echoes horribly in the stone room. You begin to kick on the outside of the crypt, hoping your friends will hear you. “Help!”

  It’s a weird feeling — to be terrified and embarrassed at the same time. You don’t know which will be worse — for the moaning thing to get you, or for your friends to come to the crypt and wind up staring right at your rear

  END.

  “Welcome to the Blue Team,” Marcie says with a smile.

  “Glad you’re on the team,” Martin adds. He crushes your hand in a hearty handshake.

  “So, what are we playing?” you ask.

  “The game is called The Hunt,” Lara tells you.

  “What are we hunting for?” you ask.

  Marcie’s voice drops down to a croaking whisper. “The creepiest, most terrifying things we can find,” she says.

  “We vote on which team finds the scariest stuff,” Martin explains. “If you haven’t chickened out by then, you’ll become an official member of the Horror Club.”

  “Don’t worry about me,” you say. “I love a good scare.”

  “Come on,” Lara says. “Let’s get this game going!”

  You follow your teammates outside. Marcie goes first. Her flashlight beam bounces around the overgrown yard, making weird yellow shadows.

  You begin scanning the yard, but Martin stops you. “Not here,” he says. “You’re the newest member. You have to pass the test!”

  Test? You don’t like the sound of that.

  Martin grins and points across the street. “You go there!”

  The cemetery!

  Turn to PAGE 106.

  “I’ll take the gray rock,” you tell the wizard. You figure the glowing red stone is too obvious — it must be a trick!

  He drops the gray rock in your hand. You close your eyes. Home, you think. Take me home.

  You open your eyes. Nothing happens. The wizard lifts an instrument from the tray. It’s long and shiny and comes to a razor-sharp point at one end.

  “Wait!” you cry. “Wait!”

  There’s no way anyone is going to make a mummy out of me, you decide. Your eyes dart wildly around the corridor. You spot a small door at the other end. You charge through the circle of priests and barge through the door.

  “Oh, wow!” You’re standing in a room the size of a football field. Its floors are made of gleaming pink marble. The walls sparkle with real gold, and jeweled lamps hang from the ceiling.

  A large throne stands at the far end of the room. And on it sits a very old man with a short gray beard and a crown of golden leaves perched on his head. Surrounding him are a dozen bare-chested men gripping spears.

  The old man must be King Ra-ma-la-ma, you realize.

  Then you hear the priests’ pounding footsteps behind you.

  Terrified, you cry out to the king. “Help!”

  Will the king help you? Find out on PAGE 52.

  The door to the crypt might be your only chance to return home. There’s something about this monster you don’t trust. Maybe it’s the two heads. You need to escape — fast!

  “Our history books are over here.” The red head points to the opposite wall.

  “Geography’s on the other side,” the blue head booms. It points in the opposite direction. For a moment the monster’s arms become tangled, giving you just the time you need.

  You dash across the room and yank open the door labeled TO THE CRYPT. Then you throw yourself across the threshold.

  And find yourself up to your neck in warm, murky water!

  “AROOOOOOOO!” howls a hideous, echoing voice. “WHO HAS COME TO THE CRYPT OF THE SWAMP BEAST?”

  Oh, no! It’s the wrong crypt! Looming in the darkness is an enormous creature! It’s lumpy and moist, and green slime drips from its arms and legs. Its mouth is lined with sharp, red-tipped teeth. And it’s marching straight toward you!

  It looks as if this is the end.

  But wait!

  You have one more chance, if you’re brave enough. Turn back now, to PAGE 1. That’s right — go back to the very beginning, and join the Horror Club again — if you dare!

  THE BEGINNING

  You know that Martin lives somewhere in your neighborhood. You fly around reading mailboxes until you find Martin’s house.

  But your sonar tells you that no one’s home. You decide to wait. You flit all around the house, peering in windows. Finally you spot a room with posters from horror movies on the walls. This must be Martin’s room. You fly in through an open window and perch upside down on the curtain rod.

  Somehow you feel very comfortable with the floor over your head and the ceiling under your feet. You feel so relaxed that you start to doze off.

  The next thing you know, something is squeezing you. Hard! You open your eyes. A man with a brown beard has you in his fist, and he’s crushing you in his grip.

  “Look what we have here!” he says in excitement.

  “Be careful, Dad!” cries Martin.

  “Don’t worry,” Mart
in’s father says. “I’ve got the bat trapped. It can’t bite me.”

  “I’m not a bat! It’s me!” you squeak. But they don’t understand.

  “What are you going to do with it, Dad?” Martin asks.

  “There’s only one solution,” he says, shoving you in a paper bag.

  Hurry to PAGE 60.

  As the mummy case lid creaks open, you bolt up. Everything looks different. You’re not in the upstairs hall of Bat Wing Hall anymore — that’s for sure!

  You jump out of the case and stare some more. You are standing in a long corridor with walls made of stone. It’s cold in here, and you shiver as a chill runs down your spine.

  At the end of the corridor you spot a door. You begin to walk toward it when you hear strange voices chanting. The words bounce off the stone walls and echo loudly in your ears.

  And then, through the door, a line of black-haired men in long white robes march in. Their eyes seem to cut right through you as they grow nearer. Chanting. Chanting. The same spooky verse over and over again.

  “What’s going on?” you demand. “Where am I?”

  But the men don’t answer you. They form a circle around you and slowly move in. Closer.

  And closer.

  Quick! Go to PAGE 58.

  Wrong!

  “Tricked you again!” Debbie cries, cackling hideously. “I can’t believe you fell for it! Now it’s time to turn you into a monster!”

  Connor is only inches from you now. You search frantically for a way out.

  You tuck your head to your chest. Close your eyes and race back down the hallway — toward Debbie. You barrel right into her and knock her to the ground!

  But Nick and Connor are only steps behind.

  “Come back!” Debbie wails at you.

  You run. Faster. Faster!

  Down dark hallways. Footsteps pound behind you.

  You have no idea how to get out of this house.

  And then you see a door. A bright green door.

  Open the door on PAGE 43.

  You hold your breath and approach the sleeping mummy. What will happen if you wake it? You move carefully. Inch by inch. You reach your hand out toward the mummy.

  SNORRRRF!

  You jump back as the mummy lets out a disgusting snore. You pause. Then reach out again.

  This time you manage to grab a small piece of bandage that is dangling from its left arm. Quickly, you pull. The bandage rips free, and the mummy didn’t even move! What a sleeper!

  You have two of the four items on the list: the human bone and the mummy’s bandage. Now you only need a straw from a witch’s broom and three hairs from a werewolf. But time is ticking.

  I’ve searched the downstairs pretty well, you think to yourself. So the other items must be upstairs.

  You spot a narrow, circular staircase behind the mummy case. Up, up, up. Around and around you go. You’re getting really dizzy. And the air is ice cold up here. Your teeth begin to chatter. Suddenly the staircase ends in the middle of a musty corridor. You can turn left or right. Which way will you go?

  If you are wearing a sweater or a sweatshirt, turn to the right on PAGE 29.

  Otherwise, head to the left on PAGE 68.

  You stand outside and your skin feels like it’s on fire! The sun’s glare forces your eyes shut. You duck back inside, wondering what’s wrong. Then you try going out again.

  The same thing happens. For some reason, you can’t stand to be out in the sun! With growing horror, the answer comes to you: You’re still a bat!

  That’s got to be it. You’re in human form now, but the transformation must still be in effect. Bats, you remember, sleep during the day. They don’t go out in the sun.

  You need some time to think.

  “I have a headache,” you tell your mom. “I’m going back to bed.”

  “Are you sick?” she asks. She presses her hand against your forehead. “You don’t seem to have a fever.”

  “I’ll be all right,” you tell her. “I just need to sleep.”

  You go back to your room. You turn off all the lights and pull down the shades. Then you crawl back into bed and think about your problem. What are you going to do?

  And then the answer comes to you!

  Go to PAGE 74.

  You can’t help yourself. You’ll never see such a great display of bugs again. Quickly, you lift the lid on the exhibit, grab the biggest beetle, and pop it in your mouth.

  “Gross!” Lara screams.

  CRUNCH! goes the beetle. Martin and Marcie rush over to the exhibit.

  “Watch!” Lara says, pointing to you in horror. You know your friends are staring at you, but you can’t stop yourself. You pop beetle after beetle into your mouth. They crunch deliciously between your teeth. You don’t stop eating until the police arrive to arrest you for shoplifting rare insects.

  You end up in jail. But it isn’t that bad — your mom and dad bail you out in less than an hour. And while you hang upside down on the cell bars, you come up with the most amazing idea! An idea that makes you a millionaire!

  For days afterward you work in the kitchen — and in the backyard. You chop. You mix. You taste. You add more ingredients and taste again. Perfect!

  You have created the biggest craze in ice cream since Rocky Road! You make a fortune with your new flavor — Beetle Berry Crunch.

  Ssssh! Please don’t give away the secret ingredient — the one that gives it that delicious crunch!

  THE END

  “I’m not a dog!” you squeak at the boy. You pull away. He pulls back. You finally free yourself.

  “DOGGIE!” Darryl repeats as he reaches for you again.

  “I’m almost through,” Marcie calls from the kitchen.

  You have to move fast! You grab a clawful of letters and fly to the other side of the room. Darryl starts crawling toward you. Quickly, you arrange the letters in a message:

  HELP ME I AM A BAT

  You place the last letter just as Darryl reaches you. He grabs at you, but you fly up to the ceiling and perch on the chandelier.

  Marcie returns to the living room with a bowl of Jell-O. “Here’s something to eat,” she tells her brother. Then she notices the message. “Did you do that, Darryl?” she asks in amazement. “I can’t believe it! You’re a genius!”

  “It was me!” you squeak from the ceiling. To let Marcie know who really wrote the message, you swoop down. She takes one look at you and shrieks. Then she grabs a flyswatter from a table and begins swatting at you.

  This is no good. Should you give up on Marcie and escape — or try once more to communicate with her?

  Escape on PAGE 62.

  Or try to communicate on PAGE 123.

  You pull open the green door. You find yourself back in the living room. This house is like a never-ending maze, you think.

  You glance behind you. No sign of Debbie, Nick, or Connor. You check your watch. It is 10:50 P.M. — you have only a little over an hour before you turn into a monster.

  You’re trying to decide what to do next when you hear a strange noise.

  Thump. Thump. Scrape.

  The noise grows louder. And louder.

  Thump. Thump. Scrape.

  You slowly turn and find yourself staring at a mummy! A six-foot-tall mummy wrapped in old, yellowed bandages that are starting to unravel. Its eyeless, mouthless, bandaged face seems to stare back at you.

  A sour smell invades your nostrils. The smell of decay. Of rotting flesh. Of death. You gag and hold your nose.

  Then the mummy turns stiffly and disappears down a hallway. You don’t want to follow it, but you need mummy bandages for the scavenger hunt. You have to follow it. You have no choice.

  Go to PAGE 26.

  “Hey, listen, I’m really sorry,” you tell the witch. “But I’ve got to look out for myself now. I’ll try to help you later.”

  Then you grab her broom.

  “How dare you abandon me!” the witch shrieks. She starts to mumble a stri
ng of weird words. All you can make out is something that sounds like “Amikazoomy!”

  At that instant, the handle of the broom glows bright blue in your hand. And then the broom begins to move!

  You try to pull away. But you can’t!

  Your hand is stuck to the broom!

  “Hey!” you yell. But it’s too late. The broom lifts you up. Higher and higher. You wrap your arms and legs around it and hold on for your life. Then the broom starts to fly!

  “Stop!” you yell. You can hear the witch cackling in her box.

  You zoom straight to the ceiling. Swerve to the left. Then head for the little window. Faster. Faster!

  You crash through the glass!

  The icy night air stings your face as you zoom in circles through the sky. You stare down at Bat Wing Hall. Nick, Debbie, and Connor stand on the front lawn, pointing up at you.

  You made it out! Too bad now you’ll never make it down to the ground.

  THE END

  You realize the truth sounds too batty. Besides, it will be a lot easier to prove what happened if you’re already at Bat Wing Hall. You fly outside into the light and instantly transform into a kid again. You wait for the movie to finish, then meet your friends in the lobby.

  “Why don’t you have a special meeting of the Horror Club, just for the Blue Team?” you suggest. “I never got to tell a story, and I have one that’s really scary.”

  “Good idea,” Marcie says. “This mall is boring.”

  “I have to go home first,” Lara announces.

  “Me, too,” agrees Martin. “We’ll meet at Bat Wing Hall in an hour.”

  It’s cloudy, and you’re able to ride the bus almost all the way to the mansion. The sunlight only stings a little as you make your way up the hill to the old house.