Creature Features (Strange Matter, 15)

On the outskirts of town, the Fairfield Starlight Drive-In waits silently in the dark. A long time ago the giant movie screen flickered with life, showing technicolor westerns, murky mobster flicks and monster movies, but not anymore. Now the giant screen is overgrown with vines while rows of rusted speakers line the barren field like grave markers. Jonathan Drake often wonders what it would have been like to see his favorite old horror movies on the big screen. He and his friends visit the Starlight Drive-In often. They wander around the dark, overgrown field, remembering their favorite scenes from horror movies and reciting lines by heart. Then Jon hears a strange noise, like the hiss and pop of an old movie. They watch in shock as the speakers begin to shake and a beam of light leaps from the projection booth on to the screen. Jon and his friends are about to make their scream debut in a special feature . . . a real creature feature . . . and their roles are to die for.