Free Zombie Surf Commandos from Mars! by Tony Abbott Page A

camp. I think it’s called Camp Goofy.”
    Liz laughed. Holly always made her laugh.
    â€œHey, wait a second,” said Jeff. “Sean’s okay. In fact, I think he’s pretty great.”
    â€œYeah, I think he’s great, too,” said Holly. “Especially when he’s at camp!”
    Liz laughed again as Holly pushed up her funny glasses and winked. “Come on, guys,” Liz said finally. “Let’s hit the lake before it dries up.”
    Jeff smiled at both of them. “I’ve got a feeling that today is going to be very fun.”
    Liz wondered whether to tell Jeff that it only might be very fun, but it would definitely be very strange. “Just keep your eyes open for the next weird thing to happen.”
    Then, as if to say — here I am! — the next weird thing did happen.
    As the kids passed an alley on their way to the beach — a ten-foot-tall green slimy blob of gunk slid out and oozed toward them!
    Thick red liquid was dripping from its teeth.
    Yes! The blob of gunk had teeth! And two enormous black eyeballs glaring down at the kids. Yes! It had eyeballs!
    Liz grabbed Jeff by his shirt and pulled him out of the way, but Holly was too far ahead. “Holly!” she cried out. “Run!”
    Too late!
    The oozy blob had her in its — its — ooze!

2
    Say, Ooze That Blob, Anyway?
    Holly flung her arms wildly! She cried out!
    She tried to pull away, but the thing wouldn’t let her go!
    It was horrible. It was disgusting. In a matter of seconds, Holly was totally swallowed up by the creature.
    She screamed out a feeble last word — “Dad!”
    Dad? It was then that Liz saw a man’s tiny head pop out of the slimy green mass.
    â€œDad!” Holly repeated, jumping up to the head and kissing its cheek. A moment later — kkrripp! — the sound of Velcro, and out popped Todd Vickers, the not-at-all-famous movie director, writer, producer, special effects person, camera person, and in fact the only person at nearby Humongous Horror Movie Studios.
    â€œHowdy, slime fans!” Mr. Vickers said with a big smile. He patted the oozy costume next to him, then wiped his hand on his pants.
    â€œMeet the star of my latest film. Do you love him, or what?” Mr. Vickers pointed down the street to the sign over the ticket booth at Plan Nine Drive-in. Bloodred letters spelled out — Blobbo, the Hideous Mutant Brainoid!
    Liz nodded. Every time she went to the Drive-in and saw the screen flash with the words Another Humongous Horror! she knew that it was going to: (a) be a horror movie about something creepy, (b) be filmed in Grover’s Mill in less than a week, (c) have lousy acting and a dumb plot, and (d) have special effects that weren’t all that special.
    â€œCool!” Jeff gasped. He looked over the quivering lump of ooze. “But what’s the difference between a brain and a brainoid?”
    Mr. Vickers stroked his chin. “I don’t know … what?”
    Jeff frowned. “I was asking you …”
    â€œOh, never mind that,” Mr. Vickers went on, quickly hiding the brainoid costume under a large black cloth. “Tonight, at the very stroke of eight o’clock, this very night, yes, tonight, just before the movie starts, Blobbo and I are going to give the audience such a total gross-out, skin-crawling scare. Everyone will wish they’d all bought popcorn!”
    â€œPopcorn?” asked Jeff. “Why?”
    â€œFor the bags!” Mr. Vickers chuckled loudly.
    â€œHuh?” Liz said.
    â€œTo be sick in!” Mr. Vickers laughed again, a little less loudly.
    â€œDad!” cried Holly. “I have friends here!”
    It was true that sometimes Mr. Vickers seemed to forget he was a grown-up.
    â€œAnyway,” he continued, “we’re going to fire up the floodlights again. People will pour in from miles away!” He pointed at two floodlights standing like