Escape from Camp Run-For-Your-Life Read online

  Nothing.

  It’s a bottomless black hole.

  “Watch out, loser!” Brad yells in your ear.

  He balances beside you on top of the hurdle for a moment. Then he shoves off — and pushes you to one side.

  “Whoa!” you shout, flailing your arms. You throw yourself off the hurdle.

  But you’re off balance. Your leap isn’t long enough. You land half in and half out of the pit.

  Your legs dangle over empty space.

  Coach Rex runs up beside you along the track. “That pit goes three miles deep,” he informs you. “And that’s the hole truth.”

  You gasp, “Thanks for the info, Coach.”

  Quick, go to PAGE 128.

  A javelin hurtles at your chest. You fling yourself to one side, then snap your hand out.

  Yes! You snagged the wooden shaft!

  So does Brad. Five other contestants also catch javelins. But not with their hands.

  You’ve heard of the agony of defeat — but this is ridiculous!

  I want out! you think. You don’t care about winning anymore.

  The losers are carried off to the infirmary. Just like all the other campers. You glance up at the stands.

  There are less than a dozen people left. And they’re all waiting in the long line for the infirmary!

  “Ready for the final event?” Coach Rex calls cheerily.

  As you turn back to him, your gaze is caught by a long pole leaning against the stadium wall. The kind they use in pole vaulting.

  It looks long enough to clear the wall.

  This could be your last chance to escape. But you’ve never pole-vaulted before. Can you make it over the wall?

  Or should you hang in there, try to win the final event, and ride your mountain bike prize to safety?

  If you try the pole vault, turn to PAGE 30.

  If you go on to the final event, turn to PAGE 119.

  You dig with your bare hands in the soft earth. Kim doesn’t help. “I don’t want to break a nail,” she sniffs.

  After digging down a few inches, you feel something hard. You paw feverishly at the dirt. Is it gold? Jewels?

  Kim bends over for a look.

  “It’s a skeleton!” she gasps. “Human!”

  You feel a chill. You thought Coach Krump was kidding when he said the cave was full of human bones. But it seems he was serious. Dead serious.

  Swallowing your fear, you keep digging. Ten minutes later, you’ve uncovered the entire skeleton.

  “Yuck! I’m not touching that thing!” Kim declares.

  You’re not eager to touch it, either. But you’ve got to get a bone if you’re going to win the Outdoors Medal.

  And after all you’ve been through, you want that medal!

  “One of the ribs is cracked,” Kim points out. “Break it off and take it.”

  You think it might be easier to lift off the skull. But on the other hand, the skull is bulky. It won’t fit in your pack.

  If you go for the skull, turn to PAGE 17.

  If you go for the rib, go to PAGE 32.

  That boat doesn’t look sturdy enough for the rapids, you think. Besides, you really don’t want to steal it. You could get in trouble. So you and Kim stick to the muddy trail.

  A few minutes later, you spot another trail, leading away from the riverbank.

  “This way!” you exclaim.

  The trail leads straight toward the mountain. Instead of swamp mud, you’re walking on grass.

  “I told you we should go this way!” Kim cries. She pushes ahead of you.

  Liar! you think. But you don’t really care. Because at the end of the trail, you’ve spotted a dark hole.

  It must be Zombie Cave!

  “Hurry!” you urge Kim. “We’re almost there!”

  Kim speeds up. You speed up behind her. The trail is covered with soft moss and grass.

  Kim takes another step — and disappears.

  “Kim!” you yell. You rush up to where you last saw her. You step on the soft mossy surface.

  Your foot goes right through.

  You’re falling!

  Fall onto PAGE 75.

  Pleased and happy, a zombie claps her newly mended hand on another’s shoulder.

  The mended hand falls off!

  Oops! You’re not as good a tailor as you thought.

  One by one, all the other body parts you sewed on start falling off. The zombies slowly turn toward you.

  Kim is trembling. “We’ve got to get out of here!”

  “No way,” you assure her. “I’m sure it will be okay. I just have to sew them up again.”

  “Yeah, sure. Later!” Kim mutters, and bolts away.

  You hold up the needle and grin weakly at the approaching zombies. “Satisfaction guaranteed,” you offer.

  With a swipe, one zombie knocks the needle from your hand.

  This does not look good.

  Desperately, you begin, “I could try a different stitch —”

  But the zombies don’t let you finish your sentence. They surround you. Then they begin to tear you apart. Limb by limb.

  Uh-oh. Your life is hanging by a thread.

  SNIP!

  THE END

  “Let’s fake injuries,” you whisper quickly to Brad.

  You take a deep breath and run toward the bar.

  The flames are turned up as you jump for the bar. They roar from underground gas jets. Heat sears your feet right through your sneakers.

  You start to swing around the bar. Flames lick at you.

  Now you know how a barbecued chicken must feel!

  You do a couple of practice twists. You’re actually a good gymnast. It’s hard for you to pretend to do badly, when you know you could be top dog.

  But you’ve got to escape from Camp Run-for-Your-Life!

  Okay, now’s the time. Your plan is to let go of the bar. When you land, you’ll pretend that you hurt your ankle.

  You swing around one more time. Then you release your grip. You’re sailing through the air …

  Whoops! You flew a little too far. Right into the ring of fire that surrounds the landing mat.

  Bad news. Really bad news.

  You’re not top dog.

  You’re a hot dog!

  THE END

  You fall about ten feet, then thud down beside Kim at the bottom of a pit. “Ow,” you groan, climbing to your feet.

  “Where are we?” Kim’s voice shakes with terror.

  “How should I know?” you snap.

  You peer up at the opening of the pit. Too deep to climb out. But a dark tunnel yawns in front of you.

  You have no choice. You have to walk through it.

  You step cautiously forward. The air is thick and damp. You wonder if you’re having a nightmare. If so, you can’t wait to wake up!

  The deeper you go, the darker the tunnel gets.

  “It’s so stuffy in here,” complains Kim. “I can’t breathe!”

  She can’t breathe? Hmm … not a bad thing. Maybe that means she’ll shut up! you think hopefully.

  A moment later you step into a large cavern full of flasks and beakers. It looks like some sort of science lab.

  Dim light fills the room, but you can’t tell where it’s coming from. At the far end, a cage hangs from the ceiling. You step closer. What’s in there?

  When you see, you clap a hand over your mouth to keep from screaming.

  Go on to PAGE 127.

  Can you swim to shore? It seems to be your only chance.

  “Jump!” you shout to Kim.

  The boat is only a few feet from the falls. The rushing water sounds like thunder.

  You jump —

  And choke, as a huge wave slaps you in the face. Swirling water grabs you and pulls you down, down … down to the bottom of the river. It tumbles you around and around, like laundry in a washing machine.

  And it’s pushing you toward the falls!

  Your lungs are bursting. In another moment, they wil
l fill with water. Your body is scraped and bruised from the rocks.

  Why did you think you could swim away from a waterfall?

  News flash:

  You’re all washed up!

  THE END

  You and Kim dash up to the mouth of the cave. The pack of hungry zombies is closing in on you.

  “We’re trapped!” Kim screams.

  “Not yet!” you pant. You put your back against the big boulder and begin to shove as hard as you can.

  “What are you doing?” Kim demands.

  “Help me!” you cry. “We can start an avalanche!”

  “It will never work,” Kim declares. “Don’t you know anything? Zombies are the living dead! You can’t hurt them.”

  “Maybe not,” you mutter. “But we can slow them down!”

  You push harder on the rock. It starts to totter.

  And then it topples!

  When the boulder hits the ground, part of the cliff collapses. A ton of rocks pours down the trail.

  “UURRGHH!” the zombies moan as they’re pelted with stones. Arms and legs fly in every direction. Heads roll.

  The zombies haven’t been destroyed. But it will be a long time before they can pull themselves together.

  When the rocks stop falling, you step up to the opening to Zombie Cave. A faint light glows from inside.

  Go to PAGE 126.

  “I’ll try the hike,” you decide.

  “Okay. Meet Coach Krump at the equipment shed,” Coach Rex orders. He points out the shed to you. “Get going, camper!”

  Four other kids are already waiting at the equipment shed when you get there. A dark-haired girl with braces smiles at you. “I’m Tracy,” she says. “I’m going on the hike, too.”

  The other kids introduce themselves as Samantha, Al, and Ted.

  Samantha, a tall, strong-looking girl, beckons all four of you closer. “I’ve heard some strange things about this hike,” she whispers. “They say some kids don’t come back from it.”

  “Then why are you going?” Al asks.

  “I want to win the Outdoors Medal,” Samantha replies calmly.

  You smile to yourself. Camps always have silly scary stories. You know Samantha is only trying to psych out the competition. But you’re a good hiker. You plan to win that medal yourself.

  “Here comes another hiker!” Ted exclaims.

  You glance up and see someone running toward the shed.

  “Oh, no!” you groan.

  What’s wrong? Find out on PAGE 36.

  You hold your stomach, groaning. “Ooohh, I’m sick. Where’s the infirmary?”

  Charlie points to a low, white building across from the cafeteria. “Hope you make it back.”

  Huh? Why wouldn’t you make it back?

  At the infirmary door, a voice behind you makes you really groan. “Got a problem, camper?” Coach Rex asks.

  “I’ve got a bad stomachache,” you reply, doubled over.

  Coach Rex shakes his head in disgust. “I knew you couldn’t cut it.”

  He pushes you through the door of the infirmary, locking it behind you.

  “Nurse, have you repaired the transporter yet?” he demands.

  Transporter?

  Turn to PAGE 33.

  You pull yourself frantically up. Your arms ache.

  You glance down. The zombie is trying to climb the cliff, too. But it’s clumsy. Its rotting fingers can’t grasp the rocks.

  Finally, it seems to give up. You hang there, halfway up the cliff, and watch as it vanishes into the trees.

  Whew! “I think it’s gone,” you tell Kim. “Come on, let’s head back down the cliff.”

  You’ve almost reached the bottom when you hear a growl.

  Crouched in your path is a mountain lion!

  The big cat’s yellow eyes gaze hungrily at you.

  Uh-oh! “Head back up,” you whisper.

  But just as you inch up the cliff, a huge boulder bounds down the slope, just missing you.

  “The zombie!” Kim cries. “It must have climbed up the trail! It’s up at the top of the cliff!”

  You duck as another boulder hurtles past your ear.

  “Let’s get out of here!” Kim cries.

  Great idea, you think. But where to? If you head down, the mountain lion will attack.

  And if you climb up, you’ll have to face the zombie!

  If you go down toward the mountain lion, turn to PAGE 101.

  If you head up toward the zombie, turn to PAGE 54.

  You cycle down a dirt road until you reach the highway.

  You remember the old man down the road. You take a left to his house.

  You jump off your bike and race up to the porch. BRRING! BRRING! You hit the doorbell again and again. Finally, the old man opens the door. He’s holding a pair of headphones.

  “You’re never going to believe this,” you pant, “but Camp Running Leaf is sending kids to an alien planet as slaves!”

  To your shock, the old man doesn’t call the nearest mental hospital. Instead, he invites you in!

  “I’m Agent Driscoll,” he tells you. “I head up a government team that investigates alien activity.”

  You stare at him. This is incredible!

  “We’ve had our suspicions about that camp for some time now. One of my field agents went to check it out,” the old man goes on. “But she never made it back.”

  You remember the skull you saw in the lake. Shuddering, you pull out the ID card you found and show it to Agent Driscoll.

  He nods sadly. “Draper was a good agent,” he tells you. Then he brightens. “But at least now we’ve got enough evidence to get a search warrant!”

  Join the search on PAGE 96.

  SPLOOOSH!

  The pipe empties you into a river. You gasp and splash, trying to keep your head above water.

  After a few minutes, you manage to swim to shore. You climb an embankment and scramble onto a bridge by some railroad tracks.

  A train whistle blows. You move off the tracks and wait. A minute later, a freight train rumbles by.

  The train is moving slowly. You grab on to a ladder and haul yourself into an empty boxcar. You lean against a wall, dazed.

  The rocking of the car lulls you. Your eyes feel heavy. Your chin falls to your chest.

  The sound of someone clearing his throat wakes you up.

  When you open your eyes —

  Oh, no.

  A tall, stern police officer is standing over you.

  Scowling.

  Get arrested on PAGE 110.

  “A snake!” Kim cries.

  You look. “It’s just a garter snake,” you grumble. “Chill!”

  A few minutes later, Kim screams again.

  What now?

  “Across the river!” she shrieks. “A z-z-zombie!”

  You roll your eyes. “There’s no such thing as zombies,” you mutter. “Will you hurry? The other teams are going to beat us to Zombie Cave.”

  You slog down the trail. Kim sulks behind you.

  Then she screams again. “The zombie! It’s back! Look!”

  “Oh, please,” you grumble. You peer across the river.

  Hey. What’s that moving over there? Something tall and pale flickers between the trees.

  “See?” Kim hisses in your ear.

  “It’s probably just another hiker,” you say.

  But suddenly you’re not so sure.

  You know zombies don’t exist. But you wish Coach Krump hadn’t talked so much about them.

  You look again. Whatever it was, it’s not there anymore.

  Just another hiker, you tell yourself. Relax.

  “Oh, no!” Kim cries. “Now we’re really in trouble!”

  Find the trouble on PAGE 46.

  You turn left and race down the road. You keep running and running. Your legs burn, and your lungs feel as if they’re about to burst.

  Where is the old man’s house? Was it some kind of mirage?

  Suddenl
y, a black shape looms out of the darkness.

  There it is! The old man’s house!

  No lights are on. You approach the front door slowly.

  Raising your fist, you knock. The door swings open. You peer into the dimly lit hall to see who answered it.

  There’s no one there!

  You gulp. Should you go into this creepy place?

  But then you hear the faint TROMP! TROMP! of many feet.

  The campers! They’re on your trail!

  Looks as if you’ve run out of choices.

  Check out the old man’s house on PAGE 44.

  “Come on!” you say to Kim. “Let’s fight our way out!”

  You take a swing at the nearest zombie.

  SQUELCH! Your fist goes into its stomach!

  Up to the elbow!

  Big, BIG yuck!

  The zombie falls back with a hideous moan. You feel like puking. But you don’t have time right now. You and Kim dash up the trail leading to Zombie Cave.

  You glance over your shoulder. The zombies stalk after you. They move slowly — but steadily.

  And they look hungrier than ever!

  “Head for the cave!” Kim shouts. “We’ll be safe there!”

  “In a place called Zombie Cave?” you reply. “I doubt it!”

  But, peering around, you realize you have no choice. The cliff in front of you looks too sheer to climb.

  The trail to the cave is steep and rocky. Very rocky. One especially big boulder balances on a ledge by the cave mouth.

  Hmm. That gives you an idea.

  Move on to PAGE 77!

  You sail through the air. Your legs pump frantically, as if you’re still running on ground. And then …

  Your feet touch the track.

  You made it!

  Terror carries you down the track faster than you’ve ever run before. You whip along like a greyhound. You’re going to win this race!

  Suddenly, you hear a scream behind you.

  You glance over your shoulder. It’s Brad!