Archie's Alien Disguise Read online

  Before I have a chance to test how well they would grip the wall, something lands on my head. It’s a rope!

  I look up to find Pockets sticking his head out the window. He waves for me to take the rope. I’m slightly disappointed that I won’t get to try scaling the wall, but only slightly.

  I quickly slip my shoes back on and begin to climb the rough rope. I tell myself this is not at all like the time in gym class when I tried to climb the rope and my shorts fell down in front of the whole class. “Nope,” I say out loud, “not like that at all.” I soon reach the top and am proud to say that my pants are still safely around my waist.

  The room is cramped and dark. The walls are covered with paintings and tapestries showing scenes of knights having jousts.

  “Seen any ghosts yet?” I ask, landing on the carpeted floor with both feet.

  Pockets shakes his head. “But I did find the princess. She’s being kept in a room upstairs.”

  “And you made a friend!” I say, pointing to the little black cat who had followed Pockets into the castle.

  “Very funny,” Pockets says. “He won’t leave me alone.”

  I bend down to pet the cat, but he pulls back and rubs up against Pockets instead.

  “Now listen,” Pockets says. “We have to find a way to get to Princess Viola. There are two B.U.R.P. guards standing outside her room. We should—”

  But before he can finish talking, the door creaks open and my heart starts thudding. Pockets pushes me into a dark corner of the room. I hold my breath.

  “There you are, big kitty!” the boy’s voice says. To my horror, he swoops Pockets into his arms, groaning a little at the cat’s weight, and carries him out of the room! The door swings shut behind them, but not before I hear the boy say, “We’re going to play together all day!”

  For a minute I don’t move. The little black cat is pawing at the closed door, meowing. Do I go after them? What would Pockets want me to do? I replay the scene in my mind. Pockets could have defended himself. He could have used any of the gadgets in his pockets, or even his own strength to fight off the boy, but he didn’t. He just pretended to be a regular cat. That must mean he had something to gain by being taken. The only thing I can think of is that by going along, he’ll be able to find out what B.U.R.P. plans to do with the Staff of Power once they get it.

  That means that it’s up to me to rescue the princess!

  I think for a minute, looking around the small room. I don’t see any way out besides the window and the door. I wish I’d thought to bring my space map. It worked when we were flying underwater on the planet Nautilus; maybe it would have shown me how to get to the princess.

  It’s doubly hard to think because the little black cat is running in circles around the room and it’s making me dizzy. He finally darts over to one wall and starts pawing at a tapestry hanging there. If he keeps pulling on it, he’s going to rip the fabric. He finally nudges it aside and ducks behind it. I look closer. Where’d he go?

  I pull the tapestry back, and instead of seeing the wall behind it, I spot an open doorway! Pockets’s new friend found a secret passageway! He must have felt a breeze. I’ll have to remember that for the next time I find myself locked in a maybe-haunted castle. I pause for only one more second, then run straight through, letting the tapestry fall into place behind me.

  This turns out to be a mistake. It’s completely dark in here. If only I’d thought to bring those night vision goggles!

  After a minute my eyes begin to adjust. I blink. Yes! I can see the outline of the damp stone walls and the uneven steps in front of me. I rub my eyes, and things get even clearer. These new eyes may not be able to see through walls, but they can see in the dark!

  I scramble up the stairs, not knowing where I’m headed, just that I have to go up. The stairwell twists and turns. I find the black cat curled up on a stair, cleaning his ears with his paw. He doesn’t even glance up as I step past him.

  I stop when I hear a faint noise coming from the other side of the wall. It sounds like… burping? Do ghosts burp?

  There it is again, followed by a brief giggle.

  “Ack!” I jump back as something soft rubs against my leg. It takes a second to realize it’s only that cat again! But now I can’t keep my balance, and I go headfirst into the wall beside me.

  Only it isn’t a wall! It’s a door painted to look like a wall! The door swings open, and I go crashing right through it.

  I land hard on the stone floor of a brightly lit room. A yellow-haired, three-eyed girl stands above me with her hands on her hips. She glares at me, burps, and says, “Ever heard of knocking?”

  Then she burps again.

  This princess is nothing like the ones in the fairy tales!

  Chapter Seven:

  The Great Escape

  I quickly jump to my feet. “Sorry to burst in,” I say, rubbing my sore butt. Then I stop, because that looks weird. “But hey, I found you!”

  She looks me up and down as the little black cat winds in and out of her legs. Her face softens. “Yes, you found me. But who ARE you? I’ve never seen you before. You’re not with them, are you?” On the word them, she crumples her nose like she smells something bad.

  “No, no, I’m here to rescue you,” I promise her.

  She glances down at her boots. “And this is your cat?”

  I shake my head. “I’m actually here with a different cat. He has bottomless pockets.”

  “Huh?” she asks.

  Why did I say that? “Never mind,” I add quickly. “Let’s just get out of here before they find us.”

  “Sorry about the burping before,” she says, grabbing her cloak from the back of a chair. “You wouldn’t believe the gassy stuff they’ve been feeding me! Beans and broccoli for every meal!”

  “It’s all right,” I say. “I have a three-year-old sister. You wouldn’t believe the things that come out of her.”

  She smiles and says, “I can’t believe I didn’t think to check for any secret doors in the walls. I feel foolish.”

  “Don’t feel bad. B.U.R.P. is very tricky.”

  “We’re still talking about my burping?” she says. “I said I was sorry. I know it’s not very princess-like.”

  “No, no, this is a different kind of burp. It’s the name of the group who took you.”

  The princess’s brows squish together in confusion. “No one took me. I was invited here by circus performers,” she says. “They were dressed up in colorful costumes and masks, and they invited me to come see a play they were performing at the haunted castle.” She pauses, then grumbles, “Never did see any play.”

  I tilt my head toward her. “Didn’t your parents ever tell you not to go wandering off with strangers?”

  “Yes, smarty-pants. But my bodyguard said it was okay.”

  I think of Hector asleep in that shed. Somehow I don’t picture him letting her go off with anyone. “Did he really?”

  She looks down. “Well, no. But he wasn’t around for some reason and I wanted an adventure. I admit, it didn’t turn out so well. Why would they keep me here?”

  “Basically, they’re after the Staff of Power,” I tell her. “But we really need to leave now.”

  Her eyes widen. “What would a group of circus performers want with the Staff of Power?”

  I roll my eyes. This girl is not getting it. “They aren’t circus performers,” I explain as patiently as possible. “B.U.R.P. is a criminal organization trying to take over the universe.”

  “What’s a universe?”

  Oops! I can’t explain what the universe is without telling her about all the other planets and galaxies, and I’m sure that Pockets would forbid that. So I just shake my head and say, “I’ll explain later. We have to go.”

  She nods and runs down the stairs ahead of me. Her heavy boots clatter loudly on the stairs, and I want to suggest maybe she take them off, but I’m not going to tell a princess what to do.

  We haven’t gotten very fa