Shadows of Caesar's Creek Page 6

  “Don’t forget that!” Rashawn said with a laugh.

  “It also says not to bring portable music players or handheld video games,” Rico continued.

  “Not even my Mega Mighty Martian Blasters game?” Ziggy asked with dismay. “How will we practice dealing with invading Martian spacemen without that game?”

  “Maybe we’ll get real information instead of pretend video-game stuff,” Rico replied sensibly.

  “You mean it’s not real? There aren’t any Martians out there ready to attack Earth, mon?” Ziggy rolled off his chair and onto the floor, making zapping sounds like a space weapon.

  “Probably not, Ziggy,” Jerome told him. “But maybe you can ask somebody about it when we get there.”

  “If there’s even just a possibility that Martian invaders might be real, I want to be ready, just in case. Martians are purple, have three heads, and spit fire, you know, unless they’re in disguise. They can make themselves look like anything they want—a cat, a dog, even an Earthling.”

  “How do you know this?” Rashawn asked him.

  Ziggy looked at him with surprise. “Because I’ve played the game a million times, mon!”

  Rico laughed. “What else did you learn from that game, Ziggy?”

  “Martians live in trees and eat rocks, mostly. But they have a special fondness for chocolate-covered pickles, just like I do, so they can’t be all bad!”

  “I bet the folks at Space Camp don’t know any of this,” Jerome told Ziggy.

  “Well, I’ll be sure to tell them! I guess the future of the planet is going to depend on me, mon,” Ziggy said. “I can’t wait to get to Space Camp!”