Slappy- Amber Insects

Slappy stared at the shelf, at the pile of amber stones that Shannon had stacked there. He raised both arms and began to chant. I couldn’t hear the words. His voice was a whisper.
Slappy continued to wave both hands at the stones, murmuring the same string of words over and over.
As I stared in confusion, the amber stones began to move. They popped open silently. The amber appeared to melt. Bubbles formed and the stones oozed onto the shelf.
And then I realized what Slappy was doing.
The insects … the ancient insects … thousands of years old. They’d been trapped so long, and now he was setting them free.
Their spindly legs quivered. Antennae waved above their sleek heads for the first time in two thousand years. Paper-thin wings fluttered. Round black eyes rolled.
The insects breathed and wriggled and then walked. I watched them climb out from their melting amber prisons.
Over a hundred of them! They walked unsteadily, moving in narrow circles. They bumped each other and buzzed and flapped their wings.
“Aroooo! Arooo!” Slappy suddenly shouted. He motioned with both hands. “Arooo! Arooo!” He waved toward the mummy.
And as he shouted, the ancient insects obeyed. They huddled together.
Formed a dark cloud of buzzing, biting, breathing creatures.
“Arooo! Arooo!”
Hearing Slappy’s call, they raised themselves off the shelf. Swooped together. Swooped together and flew at the mummy. Flew onto his chest.
Swarmed over his head. Covered his arms, his hands.
Buzzing and biting. Tearing at the bandages. Scratching at the thick, hard tar. Snapping and beating their ancient wings against him. Burying him. Swallowing him up in a deafening attack.
The mummy appeared helpless against the swarming insects. As they smothered him, the buzzing grew louder till it sounded like an angry alarm, till it drowned out all other sound.
Yes! I thought. Yes! The dummy has finally found the way to defeat Arragotus.
The mummy grunted and groaned. He slapped at his chest. Tried to brush the snapping insects off his head. He twisted and squirmed. He batted them off his arms, pounding himself hard with his covered fists. He scratched and swiped and tried to pry them from where his eyes had been.
I stared in shock as the tar began to ooze. The bandages frayed and came loose.
Slappy tossed back his head and laughed. “Yes! I’m starting to bug you—aren’t I?” he rasped. “You know what you should do? You should call for the exterminator! Because I’m going to exterminate you! Hahahaha!”
Arragotus swung his arm hard—and sent a swarm of insects flying. I watched them land on Shannon and Aaron. They cried out and started slapping at the bugs that clung to their skin.
Another hard swing of his body and more insects flew off into the hallway. The mummy brushed them off his head, flung them toward us.

- The Dummy Meets the Mummy!, chapter 32