Chapter 7

Chapter 7 INTRODUCING: MICHAEL G! NOT TO BE CONFUSED WITH MICHAEL O OR MICHAEL P. Jodi had made her selection. She didn't feel good about it. But she'd chosen the poor mooshroom they would take away from this island paradise and hand over to an obviously up-to-no-good witch. Now she only had to make introductions. "Morgan. Po. Harper and Theo," she said, drawing their attention. "I'd like you to meet the newest member of our team. This is Michael G." Michael G mooed, as if saying hello. Or maybe he was asking what in the world was happening. "Hello, uh, Michael," said Morgan. "Welcome to the team!" said Po, and then he whispered, "I'm not really a chicken."

"Michael G," said Harper. "THAT'S AN INTERESTING NAME." "It doesn't seem very fitting," said Theo. "Are there a lot of other Michaels here?" Jodi crossed her arms. "It's a pun, smart guy. Don't you get it?" Harper laughed, obviously the first one to get the joke. Everyone else looked at her expectantly. "The scientific study of mushrooms is called mycology," she explained. "Say it fast, and it sort of sounds like, well…" She turned to the mooshroom. "IT'S NICE TO MEET YOU, MICHEL G. DO YOU MIND IF WE PUT THIS ON YOUP?" Harper held up a short rope, tied like a lasso. "Where'd you get that?" asked Jodi.

"I made it out of strings and slime," said Harper. "IT'S CALLED A LEAD, and it will let us bring Michael G with us wherever we go. Even onto a boat." "I just thought of something," said Theo. "Maybe we should bring more than one of the mooshrooms with us. In case anything happens to this one along the way." Jodi's jaw dropped. "Nothing's going to happen to Michael G. I promised him that!" Theo frowned. "I'm not sure I'd have made that promise," he said. "We're debuffed, and we have a long way to walk. The cow could be attacked by any number of hostile mobs, or even struck with an arrow or a fireball meant for one of us." Jodi put her hands to Michael G's head, as if blocking the mooshroom's ears. "Theo!" she protested. "He can hear you." "All I'm trying to say is we might have trouble protecting him," Theo replied. "In that case, we're better off with just one mooshroom," said Harper. SO WE CAN ALL FOCUS ON FROTECTING HIM. Right?" Theo scratched his head. "Yeah, actually, that does make sense."

Jodi let out a sigh of relief. She sometimes forgot that arguing with Theo usually lead to a dead end. It was much easier to get him to see the logic behind their choices than to appeal to his emotions. Fortunately, Harper was there to act as a translator when they needed it. Jodi took the lead from Harper. She placed it around Michael G and used it to guide him onto her small boat. Seconds later, they were all speeding across the water back to the mainland.

It was night, and the low moon was nearly touching the calm water. Jodi smiled. In a weird way, she realized, she had gotten her wish. For the moment, she had a pet. Everything was going really well… …until the underwater zombie attacked. It was called a drowned, and they never saw it coming. One second, everything was calm. The next, a trident burst from the water. It smashed into Morgan, knocking him off his boat.

"Morgan!" Jodi cried as her brother disappeared beneath the surface. "I'LL HELF YOUR EROTHER," Po told her. "You stay here and protect Michael!" Po dove beneath the waves, and Jodi thought: That is one brave chicken. She stayed close to Michael, holding his lead tight with one hand as she gripped her shield with the other. Nearby, Harper and Theo equipped their bows, aiming arrows at the water. But all was still and quiet. Suddenly there was a great splash of water beside Jodi's boat. She held up her shield just in time. The drowned was right in front of her. It had