They Came From Planet Q by Laura Dower

Leery movie merchandise, too. Whoever owned this store really was a superfan.
    There was even a reel-to-reel machine hooked up to show movies on a back wall. Hence the name: Reely Good. It was the kind of place I would love to explore on any normal day. But this day was anything but normal.
    â€œQuick!” Jesse called out. “Find the access doors. They’re supposed to be right here . . .”
    â€œHey!” Stella said, circling the store. “I don’t see anything. They’re supposedly right here on the map, but I don’t see—”
    All at once, Stella leaned against the wall and it began to rotate taking Stella with it. Just like that, she disappeared behind the wall for a moment and then came out the other side.
    â€œActually, that was fun,” Stella giggled.
    â€œLet me try now,” Damon said, walking over.
    â€œNo!” I shouted. “We don’t have time for fun, you guys.”
    I sounded like Stella.
    While we bickered about the doors and how to find the right stairwell to the basement below, Jesse searched the store shelves for something to help us. He clicked off the reel-to-reel projector and took a look there, too.

    Jesse plucked the last reel from the machine and held it up to see the movie.
    â€œOh, man!” Jesse cried. He looked like he’d just seen a ghost.
    â€œWhat’s wrong?” we asked.
    â€œRead this and weep,” Jesse said. He held up a reel in his hand. Some of the film unraveled to the floor. The label was half picked off.
    THEY CAME FROM PLANET Q
    ORIGINAL REEL
    â€œORIGINAL REEL?” I cried.

    â€œHow could this have happened?” Stella asked.
    We all raced over and had a look. The reel had been watched—but only halfway.
    â€œMaybe . . .” I said slowly. “If the reel was only half-watched . . .”
    â€œThen only half the movie will come to life?” Stella blurted.
    â€œYou guys,” I said. “A B-Monster comes alive in the reel’s opening segment. After that all bets are off. The rest doesn’t matter.”
    Damon grabbed the reel and shoved it into his backpack. We’d deal with its destruction later. Right now, we had firequartz to find.
    â€œHey!” Stella called out. She’d wandered to the other side of the store. “Over here!”
    Stella pulled back a fancy curtain to reveal another secret door. It was marked on the map as a staircase, but this looked way more like the entry to a bank vault. Stella pushed and pushed but it wouldn’t budge.
    â€œIt looks as if it has been sealed shut for a century,” Jesse said.
    â€œWait. What’s this ?” Damon shouted. He rubbed his finger along the edge of the enormous vault-like door. Then he showed us his finger tip. It was covered in a thin coating of red dust.
    Red dust!
    â€œWow,” Jesse cried. “Just like Leery said!”
    â€œIt’s all over my shoes!” I said.
    We had to get this heavy door open. The four of us pressed and wiggled, nudged and leaned.
    Nothing.
    Somewhere upstairs, outside the shop, I heard a loud blast followed by a roar and a crash. More bots had crashed into the mall. They were catching up to us.
    â€œWe have to figure this out before the bots destroy the mall!” Stella cried.
    â€œForget the mall!” I said. “These bots will destroy us!”
    â€œThey can’t get the firequartz,” I said. “Push the door again.”
    But four fifth-graders—no matter how motivated we were—were still no match for this heavy door.
    Damon took off from where we stood.
    â€œHey!” I cried. “Don’t run away again!”
    But this time, Damon wasn’t running. He was helping . Damon Molloy hit a button and the store register’s cash drawer went pa-ping .
    â€œHey!” Damon called to us. He held up a key. “What do you think this is for?”
    Jesse grabbed the key and dashed over to the vault door. He