Help! We Have Strange Powers!

  They marched us through the crowded plaza. People stopped to stare. They probably wondered why Jackson and I were getting such special treatment.

  Or maybe they thought we did something wrong and were in major trouble.

  My mind whirred. “Who is The Keeper? Why shouldn’t the other guests be safe and sound?” I demanded.

  “Sometimes things get scary here,” a Horror murmured.

  “We just got here today,” Jackson explained. “We don’t know what you’re talking about. Really.”

  “Almost there,” a Horror said. He pointed to a building up ahead. It was a redbrick building with a marquee over the wide entrance. The marquee read: HAUNTED THEATER.

  “You’re taking us to a show?” I asked.

  No one answered me.

  The Horrors began walking faster. Jackson and I had no choice. We had to jog to keep up with them.

  A sign in front of the theater read: MONDO THE MAGICAL.

  “I’m totally confused,” Jackson whispered. “A magic show?”

  At the side of the theater, I glimpsed two kids, a boy and a girl. They both had straight black hair and bright blue eyes. They peeked out at us from the corner of the building.

  Why were they watching Jackson and me so closely? I just got a quick glance at them. When I turned to stare back, they both ducked quickly out of sight. I don’t know why, but just the sight of them made me feel uneasy, suspicious….

  The Horrors led Jackson and me to a small gift shop next to the theater. Painted on the front window were the words MONDO’S TRICKS AND TREATS.

  We pushed into the store and down a narrow aisle. It was a magic store. The shelves were filled with magic tricks, wands, top hats, and other magician gear.

  They marched us through a back room. Then to a stairwell in the far wall.

  “Down there,” a Horror said. “Watch your step.”

  The stairway was steep and narrow. Our shoes thudded on the metal steps. The air grew hotter as we climbed down.

  One flight … two …

  I took a deep breath. Stay calm, Jillian. You can handle this.

  But there we were, three flights belowground. If we needed help, no one would ever find us down there.

  What did they plan to do with us?

  They unlocked a door at the bottom of the stairs. They pushed Jackson and me into a big room.

  “The Keeper is waiting for you,” a Horror said.

  “Keeper?” I asked. My voice cracked.

  “Don’t make him angry,” another Horror said. “He can be … harsh.”

  I didn’t like the sound of that.

  The Horrors didn’t follow us into the room. The door clicked shut behind my brother and me.

  Jackson and I took a step into the brightly lit room. A huge room that looked like it had been decorated by a five-year-old!

  Furry orange and green chairs and couches. A big zebra-skin rug. Bright yellow wallpaper with blue fish all over it. A purple-and-white polka-dot table with big claws on the legs. A striped floor lamp painted red and white like a barber pole, and overhead, a huge crystal chandelier.

  So many colors, it was almost blinding down there! It took me a few seconds to see that the room was crowded with kids. They were all about our age. And standing in front of the kids — two men in totally weird superhero costumes.

  One of them was dressed in red-and-blue tights, feathery yellow boots, and a leopard-skin cape.

  The other man was bigger, broader, with bulging biceps and a wide chest. He was dressed all in purple — purple tights and top, purple cape, purple boots. He had a purple mask pulled halfway down his bright red face.

  When I got over my shock, I saw that the purple guy was using both hands to hold a boy off the floor. The boy kicked and struggled, but the superhero wouldn’t let him down.

  “Let me go! Let me down!” the boy screamed.

  Both superheroes suddenly discovered Jackson and me. They turned and stared at us through their masks.

  “Do you know what POPS my PETUNIAS?” the purple one screamed. “Fresh meat!”

  The guy in the crazy costume tossed his head back and laughed like a hyena. When he finished his insane laughing, he began to chant: “Fresh meat. Fresh meat. Fresh meat. What rhymes with meat? Eat? Hahahaha.”

  The purple one dropped the boy to the floor. The boy hit hard, then scrambled over to the other kids.

  Then the purple one began taking long, heavy strides across the room to Jackson and me. “Did you come to see what the Purple Rage can do when he’s in a RAGE?” he bellowed. “Well, goody. You’re just in time!”

  I gazed across the room and quickly read the minds of the other kids.

  This is real, I realized. Not a joke. These kids are truly afraid.

  But — who were these two insane-looking superheroes? And why were we all locked in this room with them?

  “Know what PICKLES my PASTRAMI?” the one who called himself the Purple Rage boomed. He pointed to my brother. “YOU!” he cried.

  He opened his mouth in a fierce animal roar. “Hear me RAAAAAGE!” he bellowed. “YAAAAAAIIIIII!”

  Then he dove at Jackson with both gloved hands raised, as if to strangle him.

  The other kids let out horrified cries.

  Jackson acted quickly. He raised his eyes to the ceiling. And as the Purple Rage pounced, Jackson sent the crystal chandelier plunging down on him.

  The chandelier crashed onto the superhero’s head and shoulders. The Rage uttered a weak cry. He toppled facedown onto the floor.

  The chandelier shattered over him, burying him beneath it. Glass splintered and flew everywhere.

  Everyone ducked and ran out of the way.

  Groaning, the Rage shoved the mangled chandelier off his back. Slowly, very slowly, he pulled himself to his feet. He had shards of glass stuck to his face and the front of his costume.

  “That BURSTS my BALONEY!” he screamed at the top of his lungs. He made two giant fists. His eyes goggled. He clenched his teeth. He twisted his face in a furious rage.

  “That PARBOILS my PEONIES!” he bellowed. He began pounding his fists against his chest. THUD THUD THUD.

  “That SPLITS my SPAGHETTI!”

  Then he let out another deafening animal roar. And he EXPLODED.

  His body burst apart with a loud SPLAAAAAT.

  I covered my eyes and ducked as his purple guts went flying all over the room.

  Kids screamed and dove out of the way.

  When I looked up, the floor was puddled in wet gobs of purple and red.

  A hush fell over the room. The kids all looked stunned. No one said a word. No one moved.

  The other superhero stepped forward. He pushed back his leopard-skin cape. A crooked smile spread over his face.

  “My turn!” he shouted. “Did you forget that I was here?”

  He shook his head. “That purple punk was asking for trouble. Someone better shovel him up! I hate a messy houseguest — don’t you? Hahaha.”

  No one laughed. I gazed down at the puddles of what had been the Purple Rage.

  “Did you forget that I, Dr. Maniac, am your Keeper?” the superhero cried, tossing back his cape. He gazed around the room, his eyes stopping at each kid. “You still have to deal with me, kiddies!”

  “You’re crazy!” a girl shouted.

  “I’m not crazy!” the superhero bellowed. “I’m a MANIAC!”

  I turned to Jackson. “This isn’t really happening — is it?”

  “Maybe this will slow you punks down!” Dr. Maniac declared. “If you can’t take the HEAT, stay out of the FURNACE! Hahahahaha!”

  He threw a switch on the wall.

  We heard a loud hum.

  Everyone stood there silently, waiting … waiting.

  And then some kids started to scream.

  At first, I didn’t feel it. Then I began to feel the warmth creeping up from my feet.

  Waves of heat billowed up from the floor. The air grew hot. I sucked in a deep
breath, and my nostrils burned.

  The heat rose up from the floor and radiated off the walls.

  “Ow!” I cried out. The soles of my shoes stuck to the floor. The burning heat floated from below and wrapped all around me.

  Kids began hopping up and down. Shrieking and pleading for Dr. Maniac to shut off the heat. The floor was like a burning griddle.

  Sweat ran down my face, down my back. My clothing stuck to my skin.

  Jackson’s face was bright red, glowing with sweat. He was panting loudly, gasping for breath.

  Kids scrambled onto the chairs and couches to rescue their scalding feet. The air grew hotter, so hot and dry, my skin burned, and my eyes felt scratchy and raw.

  “Turn it off! Turn it off!” a girl screamed.

  “Can’t breathe!”

  “I’m … burning … burning up …”

  Dr. Maniac kept his yellow-gloved hand on the switch. His wide grin stayed frozen on his face. “Suntan lotion, anyone?” he shouted. “Are you getting a good BURN?” He laughed his ugly laugh.

  “Please … can’t … breathe …” a boy gasped.

  “Ow … It burns! It BURNS so bad!”

  “Turn it off! Please — turn it off!”

  Suddenly, I heard the thoughts of the boy next to me. His dark hair was matted wetly over his forehead. His shirt was drenched. But he stood very still, not wriggling from the heat.

  I used my powers to study his mind. His name came to me — Robby Schwartz. The names of the other kids were coming to me, too.

  Robby stared at Dr. Maniac, thinking hard.

  I created Dr. Maniac, Robby thought. He’s my comic-strip character. I made him up. I know him better than anyone. How can I destroy him? How?

  “I know you kids all like to be COOL!” Dr. Maniac boomed. He threw another switch on the wall. “How cool can you get?” he cried.

  The waves of heat faded. I breathed a sigh of relief. My hair was soaked. I wiped sweat off my forehead with one hand.

  The room cooled down. We all felt better … more comfortable.

  It didn’t last long.

  “The temperature is dropping!” a boy named Billy cried. He hugged himself. I could see him shivering.

  My breath fogged in front of me. A cold wind caught the back of my neck and sent a chill down my back.

  We were still so hot, drenched with sweat. The sudden cold felt as if we had stepped from a blazing-hot beach into a deep freezer.

  I began to shiver. My skin prickled from the cold. I couldn’t stop my teeth from chattering.

  “Careful, everyone!” Dr. Maniac shouted. “Don’t catch your DEATHS! Hahahaha!”

  Beside me, Robby Schwartz continued to stare at the superhero, thinking hard. He began to shiver. His arms quivered at his sides.

  “Help me!” Robby shouted. “Help me! Help me!” His voice came out high and shrill. His whole body trembled from the cold.

  “Help me — please!” he pleaded. “I … I can’t take it! I can’t take the cold!”

  Robby uttered a heavy groan. Then his eyes rolled up in his head. His mouth dropped open. And he collapsed to the frozen floor at my feet.

  He didn’t move.

  Kids screamed in horror.

  I bent down. I leaned over him. I turned him onto his back.

  A terrified hush fell over the room.

  I put my hands on Robby’s cold cheeks. I lifted his head gently. Then I set it back down.

  I placed my hand on his chest and listened.

  Then I raised my eyes to Dr. Maniac. “You KILLED him!” I screamed angrily. “He’s DEAD! Robby is DEAD!”

  Kids gasped. Some covered their faces or turned away.

  I climbed slowly to my feet. I kept my eyes on Dr. Maniac. “You are a murderer!” I shouted. “You killed him!”

  Dr. Maniac’s grin finally faded. Beneath his orange visor, his eyes went wide. He clapped his hand to his mouth. “No!” he shouted. “No!”

  The room grew silent.

  I pointed my finger at the superhero. “Murderer!” I said again.

  “No! No one can die!” Maniac cried. “I’m The Keeper! My job is to keep you here! No one can die!”

  He took a step toward me, then stopped. “Is he really dead? Really?”

  I nodded.

  “I’m ruined!” Dr. Maniac wailed. “Ruined! The Menace will KILL me now!”

  The Menace? That’s the second time I’ve heard that name. Who is that?

  I quickly read other kids’ minds. They were clueless, too. They had never heard of The Menace.

  “I’m ruined! I’m MEAT! I’m nothing but contaminated meat now!” Dr. Maniac screamed.

  He let out a sob. “No! I can’t end this way! I always promised myself a HAPPY ENDING! No! No way! I can’t handle this!”

  He began to scream, howling like a hound dog.

  Then he shot his arms forward as if he wanted to take off flying. And he ran right through us. Darted past Robby sprawled on the floor. His leopard-skin cape rustled behind him as he ran by and disappeared from the room.

  A few seconds later, I heard the door slam. We could hear his running footsteps clanging up the stairs.

  Then silence.

  No one moved.

  “He’s … gone,” a girl named Carly Beth said. “He left us here.”

  Robby lifted his head from the floor. “Is he really gone?”

  Kids cried out in shock.

  Gazing around the room, Robby picked himself up quickly. He brushed off the knees of his jeans.

  Kids cheered happily. A few kids rushed forward to hug Robby.

  “You’re alive! You’re okay!”

  Robby turned to me. “How did you know?” he asked. “How did you guess my plan to freak out Dr. Maniac?”

  “I didn’t guess,” I told him. “I can read minds. I read your thoughts. I knew you were going to pretend to be dead so that maniac would go crazy.”

  Robby shook his head. “You can read minds? That’s awesome!”

  “And I can use my mind to make things move,” Jackson said. “Maybe I can unlock the door, and we can get out of here!”

  We stampeded to the door.

  Jackson grabbed the knob. He twisted it. Then he turned to the rest of us.

  “I … I don’t believe it!” he cried.

  “It isn’t locked,” Jackson said. He pulled the door open all the way.

  Robby snickered. “Dr. Maniac left in such a panic, he forgot to lock it.”

  “Let’s go!” Carly Beth cried.

  “Wait,” I said. “Where are we going? Why were you all locked down here with that nutcase superhero? I don’t understand any of this.”

  Matt Daniels stepped up to me. “We are all Very Special Guests,” he said. “And we have to get out of HorrorLand. We were brought here for a reason. But we don’t know why. We just know there are a lot of evil characters trying to hurt us here.”

  “We’re trying to get to another park,” a girl named Julie said. “A place called Panic Park. Three of our friends are already there.”

  “We’ll be safe there,” Matt said. “The Horrors in this park are evil. They are all out to get us. We have to escape HorrorLand and get to Panic Park.”

  “How? Where do we go?” I asked.

  “Follow me,” Matt said, starting out the door. “I have a plan. We have to go back to the hotel.”

  We made our way up the metal stairs. Then we hurried through the magic shop and out into the sunlight.

  The Stagger Inn stood on the other side of Zombie Plaza. It seemed like miles away.

  We were all too frightened to talk. We walked in single file and kept in the shadows of the shops. Whenever we saw any Horrors, we tried to blend into the crowds and wait for them to pass.

  We were hurrying past a mask store when I spotted those two kids again. The same boy and girl with the black hair and blue eyes. They were tall and thin and very pale. They were watching us intently from behind a low brick wall.

&nbs
p; Again just the sight of them gave me a chill. Who were they? Were they spies for the Horrors?

  We sneaked into the hotel through a back door. Matt led the way down a long hall.

  I hurried to catch up to him. “What’s your plan?” I asked.

  We turned a corner. He didn’t slow down. “We have to find mirrors,” he said. “Did you notice there aren’t any mirrors in HorrorLand? That’s because mirrors are the way to escape. We can travel through mirrors to Panic Park.”

  I shook my head. “I don’t understand.”

  “Britney and Molly are two Very Special Guests who disappeared,” he explained. “They were sitting in a café in this hotel. They stepped through the mirrors on the wall. And they ended up in the other park.”

  Carly Beth moved in front of Matt. “But we already looked for the café,” she said. “And we couldn’t find it. It disappeared, remember? What makes you think you can find it now?”

  Matt pulled a gray card from his jeans pocket. “This is the room key card that Byron gave me.” He turned to me. “Byron is the only Horror who is on our side. He’s been trying to help us get to Panic Park.”

  “You’re going to use the key card?” Carly Beth asked. “How?”

  “I’m not sure,” Matt confessed. “Maybe hold it up to the wall or something. It’s opened a lot of places for us. It got us into the café before. Maybe it’ll help us find that café.”

  Carly Beth shook her head. “I think we’re wasting our time, Matt. The café is gone. Look.” She slapped her hand against the wall. “It’s solid. There’s nothing behind it.”

  “It’s our only chance,” Matt argued. He held the gray card up to the wall. He slid it along the wallpaper.

  “Come on, wall — move!” he cried. “Come on — please — open up!”

  Nothing happened.

  Matt began to walk back and forth, sliding the card along the wall. “Come on, card. Work your magic. Open up the wall!”

  Nothing.

  He groaned. “I know the café was right in this spot. How could it just disappear like that?” He tried again, sliding the key card over the dark wallpaper.