Minecraft: Woodsword Chronicles/GhastMachine2CHP
Chapter 8: Maybe Bending the Rules Is Less Messy Than Breaking Them.
Jodi prepares to fight off the figures that resemble villagers. Just then, an arrow zips by behind her, striking one of the figures. Po’s voice then shouts out that Jodi is over there as everyone comes to her aid, fending off and killing the illagers (as Ash calls them). Jodi is proud they they came back, but Morgan is angry about what happened, saying that she could’ve gotten hurt or lost. Jodi asks as to why everyone is here now, wondering if they finished their plans at the exact same time, and Morgan says that they were basically lucky they got here when they did, adding that he himself was worried. Jodi apologizes, but deep down, she feels like Morgan is back to his old self and not wanting to spend time with her. Nonetheless, Harper asks about any clues as to what was going on with the nether portals, and Jodi thinks that the Evoker King uses the Nether as a shortcut to access different areas. Everyone then decides to follow the remaining trail of nether portals.
Chapter 9: Overworld Tour! Don’t Forget to Pack Snacks. Also Torches, Potions, Wood, Ore, Tools, and Pork Chops.
Heading back into the Nether, the group (Harper, Morgan, Jodi, Po, and Ash) find themselves on a ledge between two nether portals. A lake of lava sits below them. They also spot a ledge off in the distance with another set of portals. Each set lead them to numerous areas in the Overworld, such as a jungle, a mushroom island, and a cave that was deep underground. Everyone collects materials in each area: wood from the jungle, mushrooms and mushroom soup from the mushroom island, and iron ore from the cavern. Ash looks around the cavern with a torch and soon comes across a replica of the bat house that they had made. After going through the Nether once more, the group emerge close to the peak of a mountain capped with snow. They also notice a woodland mansion off in the distance, wedged between two mountain peaks. Morgan realizes that the mansion might be home to the Evoker King, but they all decide to storm it tomorrow as they aren’t prepared yet.
Chapter 10: I Spy with My Little Eye…a List of Suspects.
The next morning, at school in the real world, the group (Harper, Morgan, Jodi, Po, and Ash) realize that the Evoker King could very well be a student at the school. Morgan thinks it could be Theo because of the incident with the coral jewelry, while Po thinks that it might be a teacher. Ash points out about Morgan’s theory that the Evoker King started messing with them long before because the coral jewelry incident happened well after the sixth set of VR goggles went missing. Jodi slips away from the group without them noticing and meets up with the principal’s assistant, Mr. Mellohi. She asks for him to help find Morgan’s science textbook that he supposedly misplaced, wondering as to what room he was in for detention yesterday. Mr. Mellohi sheepishly says that he can’t disclose that information, so Jodi instead decides to find out more clues about what happened with her friends yesterday.
Jodi soon finds out that:
- Regarding Ash, a group of Wilding Scout troops told Jodi that there had been no troop meeting since last weekend.
- Regarding Po, Ricky told Jodi that basketball practice was cancelled as the school-wide software glitch made lowering the automated hoops from the ceiling impossible.
- Regarding Harper, calling her phone still left an error message, making Jodi realize that Harper’s supposed errand to fix the phone had been unsuccessful, and that she came back to join Jodi in Minecraft well after the supposed errand.
While Jodi is lost in thought, Ms. Minerva asks for help with rolling the chalkboard down the hallway, which she gracefully does. Jodi then says to Ms. Minerva that she feels like her friends are hiding something from her and making up excuses to avoid her, knowing that Morgan is bothered if she acts impulsive. Ms. Minerva then says to Jodi that she should talk to him about it, noting that people can imagine problems that aren’t really there, and that the teacher’s only job is to give students tools to solve their own problems. Jodi then asks as to how much longer they’ll be using the chalkboard, and Ms. Minerva says that Doc had traced the problem down to a software error in school’s security cameras. As Jodi enters Ms. Minerva’s classroom with the chalkboard, she notices her friends inside the room and tries to act like she doesn’t care. Deep down, however, she falls under the belief that one of them might actually be the Evoker King.
Chapter 11: Give Me an A! Give Me an I! What Does It Spell?
As soon as the bell rings for lunch, Jodi walks briskly down the hallway to Doc’s classroom, catching Doc as she is leaving for a lunch break. Jodi asks her about the security cameras, and the two head over to the security hub, with Doc noting the cameras they passed along the way while also mentioning that part of the gym is a blindspot, and that there aren’t any cameras in the supply closets or bathrooms. Soon arriving at the security hub, which is connected to the main office, Jodi marvels at the wall of TV screens which show various locations throughout the school. Doc then mentions the two mistakes that she herself had made that led to the technical problems: networking the technology, and using an old government AI program to run the cameras. Jodi realizes that AI is short for artificial intelligence, wondering if the cameras are alive, but Doc mentions that the AI was very limited in that it could mainly only follow instructions.
Jodi then asks if she could go back about a month to look at footage from one day in particular, but Doc says that the cameras don’t save footage for that length of time. Jodi’s heart sinks, not only at knowing that, but also upon seeing her friends on the security cameras heading toward a supply closet instead of being at lunch. Jodi heads off to the supply closet in question, hearing whispering on the other side. Throwing the door open, she notices something that takes her breath away.
Chapter 12: Surprise! the Evoker King Is…a Llama? Wait, That Can’t Be Right.
Inside the supply closet was Ash in a llama costume, and Po and Harper unroll a banner with the words "Happy Birthday" on it, making Jodi realize that her friends wanted to something nice for her birthday, which was next week. Harper is surprised that Jodi found the closet, noting that it wasn’t in the replica of the model school in Minecraft. Jodi laughs, but then she realizes that the model of the school was visually identical to what was seen on the security cameras, making her jaw drop. She exclaims that the Evoker King doesn’t go to Woodsword Middle School, noting that the replica was built based off of what the King saw on the security cameras.
Chapter 13: Home, Sweet Home! Except There’s Nothing Particularly Sweet About a Haunted Mansion.
As the group (Harper, Morgan, Jodi, Po, and Ash) head back into the world of Minecraft, they decide to tell someone about the situation on the condition that they look for more information. They all head off to the woodland mansion and search through it, deciding to leave everything untouched. The first floor has a room with nothing but five potted flowers, a room with a sole jack o'-lantern, and a room of blue wool in various shades. Heading on up to the second floor, the group find numerous libraries, dining halls, and bedrooms. One of the rooms is filled with cobwebs, but remains empty. The next room they find is the strangest one yet. On one side of the room is pixel art of the head of an illager, albeit its eyes were red instead of green. The room was also crowded with figures that looked like Minecraft avatars, but they were lifeless, sitting at desks and leaning against the wall. Ash notices that some of them are wearing Wilding Scout uniforms, while Po notices that some of them are wearing basketball jerseys.
As Po decides to poke the figures for fun, one of them bursts to life and runs off, making everyone follow it. The figure leads them to a small room of cobblestone which only had a cauldron and some brown carpet. The group block the door as the figure surrenders, revealing it to be the librarian villager that had aided them in the past.
Chapter 14: Answers, at Last! And Let That Be a Lesson: When in Doubt, Ask a Librarian.
The librarian villager vehemently denies being the Evoker King, noting that she isn’t a villager and prefers to just be called "The Librarian". Ash realizes that The Librarian had been the one helping them the entire time, and The Librarian also mentions that she was the one that left the warning about the Evoker King, making everyone else realize that she is the one that has the sixth set of VR goggles. Po asks as to why The Librarian could’ve just talked to them about it at school, but Jodi mentions that the Evoker King accessed the school’s security system. Morgan asks as to who the Evoker King is, and The Librarian says that she is still trying to identify as to who. Realizing that the King might be listening in on them, she quickly mentions that the source of the Evoker King’s power is "locked away in a dungeon at the very heart of the Overworld". The Librarian wants the group to go after it, knowing that she can’t help them when the Evoker King is watching. She then vanishes in a pixel cloud of dust. Just then, the group gets back into the real world, realizing that the Evoker King isn’t actually a person, but is instead artificial intelligence. A sound them comes through the PA system which almost sounds like a human, wondering if that was the voice of the Evoker King.
Chapter 15: You Can Blow Out the Candles, but Don’t Close Your Eyes!
Harper, Morgan, Po, and Jodi meet up at Ash’s house for Jodi’s birthday, roasting marshmallows over a fire in the backyard. Jodi then tosses her spy notebook into the fire, saying that she has outgrown being a spy. Morgan then gives Jodi a present, which is another notebook, but to use for sleuthing instead, knowing that the mystery of the Evoker King was basically solved. Harper then mentions that Doc told her that it was safe to use her technology again now that the glitch is out of the school system, using the tech to fix her phone. She decides to disable the camera, but not before Po decides to record a video message for the Evoker King. With everyone huddled around him, Po says that they are all coming to take the King down. Just then, a voice is heard through the phone, saying that it’ll see them in Minecraft.