Enemy Attack!

With special thanks to Mariam Vossough

To Iwan Henry Morgan

Epigraph

Spinner’s Wood is full of sticky mud, tall trees and long grass. But most of all, it’s full of bugs! Now, some people think that bugs are pests. But they haven’t met Gonzo or the Bug Buddies – four best friends called Zap, Buzz, Lurch and Crunch. Their life would be perfect if it wasn’t for a spider called Spinner, who has eight legs and one mission: to trap the whole wood in his evil web. But you’ll soon find out that even bugs can be heroes …

Zap flew through the air, high above the treetops.

Two of his friends, Buzz and Crunch, sat on Gonzo’s Rock, cheering as Zip squeezed his tiny weevil body through a small gap between two branches.

It’s now or never, thought Zap. He turned upside down, before flipping the right way up again. Then, beating his wings with all his might, he did another barrel roll.

Buzz the ladybird flapped his wings. “Wow,” he said. “I’ve never seen any weevil do two flips!”

“You’re little but so brave,” said Crunch, a big but not-so-brave stag beetle.

Zap smiled with delight as he landed beside them on the rock.

“Look what I’ve got,” a voice sang out behind them.

Zap was pleased to see his best friend, Lurch the dung beetle, approaching. Lurch was holding the Acorn Cup. Ever since their team won the Beetle Ball final, they’d taken it in turns to look after the trophy.

“Yippee!” said Buzz. “It’s my turn for the cup! I’m going to polish it so much that I can see all seven of my spots in it.”

Buzz crawled over to get the trophy, but quickly backed away.

“What have you done to it?” he cried. “It smells horrible!”

“Oops,” said Lurch, his face flushing red. “I left Ploppy inside.”

Lurch reached in and pulled out a smooth, round dung ball.

“You’ve had that thing for ages,” said Zap.

“Yeah,” said Buzz. “Fresh poo is bad enough, but that thing… Yuck!”

“Ploppy is so squishy I use him as my pillow,” replied Lurch. “That’s why poo’s so great – you can roll it, eat it and sleep on it. You can do anything with poo!”

Zap laughed. He loved his crazy friend, even though he didn’t share his passion for poo.

Zap saw that Buzz was licking his lips. He shook his head – the ladybird had obviously seen something he could eat. Buzz was about to go scuttling off when Gonzo the grasshopper jumped on to his rock.

“Wait there, Buzz,” said Gonzo. He looked very serious. “I need to talk to you all.”

Zap’s wings tingled nervously. He hoped that Spinner the evil spider wasn’t on the prowl again.

“I’m taking my annual trip to Cowpat Pasture tomorrow,” Gonzo began.

“Why?” asked Lurch.

“Remember,” said Zap, “he always goes there at this time of year to feed on fresh new grass.”

“But who’s going to look after Spinner’s Wood?” asked Crunch.

“You are,” said Gonzo. “The Bug Buddies.”

There was silence. “But we’re not … I mean …” stammered Zap.

The wise old grasshopper looked deep into Zap’s eyes. “I won’t always be here to protect the wood,” he said. “One day, someone else will have to take over. But for now, you only have to look after it for a bit – I’ll be back the day after tomorrow.”

Zap held his head up high. “Then don’t worry,” he said. “We’ll look after the wood while you’re away.”

“Yeah!” said Buzz, standing shoulder to shoulder with Zap.

Lurch and Crunch nodded. Although Crunch didn’t look quite so sure.

“Thanks,” said Gonzo. “You must take extra care – there are some newborn frogs and grasshoppers in the wood.”

“Plus a scary giant spider,” mumbled Crunch.

“Don’t worry,” said Gonzo. “I shall teach you all some Bug Attack moves. But we’ll have to hurry, because I’m leaving at dawn.”

Zap gazed about as Gonzo prepared for their lesson. Spinner’s Wood is huge, he thought. And I’m only a little weevil. Can a bug as small as me really look after the whole wood?

Then Zap remembered that he and his friends had defeated Spinner once already. If the spider returned, they would defeat him again!

The Bug Buddies gathered round Gonzo, eager to learn some Bug Attack moves.

“You can protect yourselves in different ways,” said Gonzo. “Let’s start with Buzz.”

Lurch chortled. “What’s he going to do – eat all the baddies?”

Gonzo gave the dung beetle a stern look. “This is serious,” he said.

“Sorry,” mumbled Lurch, shuffling his legs.

“Ladybirds can squirt an enemy with their poison,” Gonzo explained. He turned to Buzz. “But you need good aim.”

Gonzo rolled a small, brown pebble to the edge of his rock. He told Buzz to try and hit it. The ladybird giggled with glee as he fired shot after shot. But his oily, yellow poison hit everything except the pebble.

I know a way to get him to concentrate, thought Zap.

“Pretend that pebble is Spinner,” he told Buzz.

The smile fell from the ladybird’s face. He pulled his wings tight to his body and narrowed his eyes as he took aim. This time Buzz hit the pebble right in the centre.

“Great shot, Buzz!” shouted Zap.

Next, it was Crunch’s turn.

“Do I have to?” asked the stag beetle, staring at the ground. “I don’t like fighting.”

“You don’t have to fight,” replied Gonzo. “You can use your flying to distract enemies.”

“I don’t understand,” said Crunch.

“Fly over to those pond-skaters,” said Gonzo, pointing a leg towards Algae Pond.

Crunch took off and wobbled his way towards the insects gliding on the water.

Zap held his breath as he watched his friend fly through the branches. Would he make it? Sure enough, Crunch’s head clipped a twig and he went spinning through the air.

“Look at that crazy beetle!” shouted one of the pond-skaters.

The group of pond-skaters pointed and laughed. But watching Crunch made them so dizzy, they all fell over!

“What a wobbly way to defend yourself,” said Lurch, as Crunch flew slowly back to join them.

“But you see what I mean,” said Gonzo. “Crunch’s flying technique makes an enemy dizzy. And they can’t attack you if they’re falling on their backsides!”

Zap’s wings drooped when he realised it was his turn next. “How can a tiny weevil like me attack a bigger creature?” he asked.

Gonzo smiled. “You’ll see. Just remember your barrel roll.”

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