Aliens for Breakfast Read Free Page B

pizza parlor, Richard’s hand disappeared. He looked down at his feet. They weren’t there either. He was invisible!

6 .
    Being invisible was a little scary. Richard couldn’t see or feel himself. So he couldn’t tell where he began or ended. As he walked into Pizza World, he moved his arms and legs very slowly. He was hoping he wouldn’t bump into anything. But even though he was really careful, he did. When he passed a table of four teenaged girls, he knocked over all their empty soda cups. Ice cubes and paper cups went flying. The girls screamed. Richard froze.
    “Keep going!” Aric’s voice boomed insideRichard’s head. “Have you never been invisible before?”
    “Are you kidding?” answered Richard. “I’m human. We can’t do that.”
    Aric gave a tiny snort. “Well, then,” he said, “just sit down quietly. Try not to move around a lot. At least no one knows that we are here. The Drane is too busy with his food.”
    Dorf and Henry were sitting at a table covered with pizza pies and soft drinks. Richard held his breath. Then he sat down quietly beside Henry. It looked to Richard as if the pizzas were the house special—Death by Pizza. They had peas, carrots, onions, cheese, and wheat germ on them. Death by Pizzas were famous on the mall. No one had ever died from eating one. But people had come close.
    “Just before Dranes divide they build up their power by eating a lot,” said Aric. Richard’s heart sank. There were seven pizzas on the table.
    “Hey, these look really good!” Dorf licked his lips. “And isn’t it great being here without that little nerd Richard?”
    “Yeah. It’s great, Dorf,” said Henry in a spaced-out voice.
    Richard felt like giving Dorf an invisible punch. “Maybe Dorf will die from the pizza,” he said to Aric.
    “No,” said Aric. “The pizza will simply help him to divide faster.”
    Dorf picked up a glass shaker of red-hot pepper flakes and poured it all on one of the pizzas. He breathed in clouds of red dust. A big smile broke out over his face. Then he reached over to an empty table and grabbed another glass shaker. He poured pepper flakes over a second pizza.
    Suddenly Dorf sprang up. He went from table to table, picking up all the pepper shakers. When his arms were full, he came back and sat down. He lined all the shakers up in front of him. Henry looked puzzled.
    “What are you doing, Dorf?” he asked.
    “Eating!” Dorf turned his widest smile on Henry. “I’m hungrier than I thought.” One by one, he emptied all the shakers onto the pizzas. Henry gulped and turned green.
    “What is in the bottles?” Aric asked Richard.
    “Red-hot pepper flakes. The hottest stuff in the world. I can’t believe he can eat all that and not explode.”

    “That is it!” shouted Aric. “Red pepper! I knew I would remember! That is the weapon!”
    “Great!” Richard watched Dorf closely. He could hardly wait to see what the pepper flakes would do. But nothing happened. Dorf wasn’t dying. He wasn’t even looking sick. He was enjoying himself! He devoured slice after slice of the pizza, eating faster and faster.
    Henry nibbled on the edge of a piece. Then he ran gasping for water. Dorf paid no attention. He ate and ate. His fair skin turned pink. His blue eyes flashed purple. A terrible greedy smile spread over his face, which was now covered with cheese and bits of carrot.
    “How come it’s not working, Aric?” asked Richard. “I mean, if it’s the weapon, shouldn’t he be getting weak or something?” Then Richard had an awful thought. What if Aric was wrong? What if the pepper flakes didn’t work against Dorf?
    “I am not wrong!” snapped Aric. Too late, Richard remembered that Aric could hear his thoughts. “It is all coming back to me now. The weapon is pepper flakes. Dranes cannot resist it. Once they start eating it they cannot stop. And then they explode.”
    “Then how come he’s so happy?” asked Richard. If anything, Dorf looked