Escape from a Video Game: Mystery on the Starship Crusader

Escape from a Video Game: Mystery on the Starship Crusader copyright © 2021 Dustin Brady. All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission except in the case of reprints in the context of reviews.

Andrews McMeel Publishing

a division of Andrews McMeel Universal

1130 Walnut Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64106

www.andrewsmcmeel.com

ISBN: 978-1-5248-7045-4

Library of Congress Control Number: 2020950776

ATTENTION: SCHOOLS AND BUSINESSES

Andrews McMeel books are available at quantity discounts with bulk purchase for educational, business, or sales promotional use. For information, please e-mail the Andrews McMeel Publishing Special Sales Department: [email protected].

Other Books by Dustin Brady

Escape from a Video Game: The Secret of Phantom Island

Trapped in a Video Game

Trapped in a Video Game: The Invisible Invasion

Trapped in a Video Game: Robots Revolt

Trapped in a Video Game: Return to Doom Island

Trapped in a Video Game: The Final Boss

Superhero for a Day

Who Stole Mr. T?: Leila and Nugget Mystery #1

The Case with No Clues: Leila and Nugget Mystery #2

Bark at the Park: Leila and Nugget Mystery #3

Introduction

Congratulations! You’ve obtained a rare piece of Bionosoft technology. This may look like an ordinary book, but it’s actually a video game that you can play from the inside. Here are some things you should know about it:

1. Bionosoft is not responsible for anything that happens in the game. Do not try to sue them if you get hurt. They’ve been sued enough, and frankly, they are sick of it.

2. Only turn to pages you’re instructed to in boxes that look like this:

14 Yes.

185 No.

If you read the book in order, you’ll get confused and leave a bad review.

3. You super-duper do not want to leave a bad review for this book because it’s been programmed to emit random unpleasant screeches if it’s been rated fewer than five stars.

4. This is a mystery story. Part of the fun is choosing which clues to follow and which to ignore. For that reason, do not go back and try different paths until you’ve completed the story. There are dozens of paths through this adventure, but don’t worry—you’ll find enough clues to solve the final mystery no matter which path you take. If you have trouble solving a puzzle, check the back of the book for hints and solutions. If you run into a dead end, a checkpoint will bring you back to the last save location so you can try again.

RETURN TO CHECKPOINT ON P. 53

5. BOOGERS ARE NOT BOOKMARKS. Goodness gracious, we should not need to say this.

6. Every path in this book has a secret letter that looks like this:

What are the letters for? Can’t tell you yet! You’ll find out once you beat the game. Don’t worry about them until that point.

7. If you run into a blank page, the sensitive electronics might be corrupted with dust. Try opening the book wide, blowing back and forth between the pages, then checking again. If you’re confused about the correct blowing technique, please consult an adult who grew up with a Super Nintendo.

8. The e-book version of this story features several modifications to make it easier to read. First, all choices have been hyperlinked so you can navigate with a single tap. In some cases, you’ll have to find a specific page number rather than make a choice. When that happens, simply tap the table of contents button to quickly jump to that page number. Finally, visit escapefromavideogame.com to print a worksheet that will allow you to fill in secret letters and solve puzzles easier.

9. Select the game difficulty below. If you choose medium or hard, return to this page and cross off a heart every time you run into a dead end. If you cross off all the hearts, you must restart from the beginning of the game.

AVAILABLE IN WORKSHEET

The Adventure Begins

this is a big day for you. Maybe even a huge day. And while no one would go so far as to call this the biggest day of your life, it’s certainly in the conversation for top 20.

You see, today, you got mail.

Crazy, right?! It’s not your birthday. You’re not old enough to get junk mail. Yet here it is: a little miracle with your name on it. You turn the package over. It’s a plain cardboard box, no different from the millions of boxes that get delivered to adults every day, except this one is special because it’s yours.

Who could have sent this to you? Your grandma? A long-lost uncle? Maybe a bad guy?

Wait!

Could this be a bomb?!

You hold the package to your ear. It’s not ticking. (Do real bombs tick, or is that just a movie thing?) Of course, bad guys don’t usually mail explosives to kids, but here you are, holding a package addressed to you even though it’s not your birthday, so the rules of everyday life don’t exactly apply to today, do they?

You finally work up enough courage to slice open the box. You slowly lift the flaps and wince. Nothing explodes. This is a great sign. You look inside to find . . . this book.

Your heart sinks a little. Books are definitely better than bombs, but nowhere near as cool as any of the possibilities that were going through your head moments ago (video game, block of gold, alien technology, etc.). You open the book and immediately get blinded by a flash of light.

Alien technology! You stumble backward. A hologram of a man pops up. The six-inch little guy is wearing a crisp dress shirt with the top two buttons unbuttoned like he thinks he’s James Bond, except he looks way too out of shape to play a Hollywood superspy. He’s smiling that smile famous people do when they’re surprising fans on TV, which makes you feel a little bad because you don’t know who he is.

Hey, the hologram says.

Uh, hi.

I’m James Desmond Pemberton, and I’d like to invite you to play a special game. I can’t tell you much about it, but trust me that it will be worth your while. Win, and I’ll share a great treasure with you. Lose, and you die.

Your eyes get wide, and you reach to slam the book closed.

Kidding! the man says. Kidding, kidding, kidding. Kind of. It’s a video game thing. I wish I could explain more, but this is a recording, and I’m almost out of time. If you’re up for the game, simply tap ‘YES.’ If it’s not for you, no biggie. Oh, um, one more thi—

The hologram cuts off midsentence. It’s replaced by two floating buttons—YES and NO. You stare at the buttons, then run to your computer. This day just went from top 20 to top 3.

You look up James Desmond Pemberton. Turns out that he’s famous enough to have his own Wikipedia page, but not nearly famous enough to be smiling that smile. He started a tech company with a boring name 10 years ago, then cashed out for a lot of money and hasn’t done much since. The only other thing of interest on the page is a picture of Mr. Pemberton in his trimmer days wearing a Sherlock Holmes hat.

Hmm, the Pemberton guy does have a lot of money. But what about the game? You search for Starship Crusader, and a video game named Galaxy Chase pops up. There’s not much online about it because it got abandoned pretty early in development. There’s some concept art, a fan-made trailer, and . . .

A single word makes you freeze.

Bionosoft.

That’s the company that got in trouble for trapping people in video games, isn’t it? You realize that this whole thing is very, very real, and you’re about to be faced with the biggest choice of your life on the biggest day of your life. Do you want to play Pemberton’s game?

14 Yes.

185 No.

you try pressing the floating yes button, but your hand goes through both the button and the book. Now your hand’s stuck!

HELLLLP!

You try shaking off the book, but instead of loosening its grip, the creepy book swallows more of your arm. It stops for a moment when it gets to your shoulder, then jumps and swallows your head. You fall into