Chapter 15

Chapter 15 Every Ending Is a New Beginning. Thanks for All the Blocks! After relying on Doc's experimental VR tech for so long, Morgan felt relieved to load into their game of Minecraft the good old- fashioned way. He was using his own game controller, which was decorated with Minecraft stickers; it felt so comfortable and familiar in his hands that he almost believed it had been custom built just for him. He wore headphones to immerse himself in the sounds of the game…and to make it easy to chat with his friends. For a moment, he worried that the game would be gone. What if the Fault had spread over the Internet like a virus? What if every instance of Minecraft across the world had been consumed or warped by the crack in the code? But his worries lifted as soon as the game loaded. Here was Minecraft, just as he remembered it. The Overworld had reset. The sun was high in a blue sky. The ground was solid beneath his feet. And his friends were there at his side. Even Ash, who was back home now but able to connect from afar.

"This is what I expected, from looking at the code," said Theo. "We plugged the hole in the game's programming when we put the Evoker King back together, but it caused a full reset. Our entire game has been rebooted." "Aw, but all our stuff!" said Po. "Our diamond pants! Our enchanted fishing rods! My huge library of skins!" "Sorry, Po," said Jodi, and she patted his head gently. "But look at it as an opportunity. Out with the old and in with the new." Po perked up. "Hey! You're an artist," he said. "You want to help me design some new looks? That half bee and half axolotl skin gave me some ideas." "I would be delighted," said Jodi, bowing.

"I'm going to ask what everyone's thinking," said Ash. "Is the Evoker King here somewhere? Does he even exist anymore?" "He said he wanted to experience the game in a new way," said Theo. "He must be here somewhere." "Sounds like we have our first mission," said Harper. "But where do we start?" "We start like we always do," said Morgan. He struck a tree until it produced wood. "We gather resources. And we make tools." "And pets!" said Jodi. "We're going to need pets!" "Somebody grab that pig!" said Po, and he and Jodi chased a poor confused pig in circles. Morgan felt totally at peace. As he crafted planks and sticks from blocks of wood, he took a moment to

appreciate the pleasure of starting a game from the beginning. Everything felt so simple all of a sudden. "Don't freak out," whispered Harper. "But someone's watching us from the trees."

Po and Jodi settled down, and Morgan looked up from his work. Harper was right. A figure stepped forward from behind a tree trunk. Morgan braced himself for a fight. But the figure wasn't any kind of mob, hostile or otherwise. It was a kid. "Hi," said the boy. "I really thought I was all alone here." "Who are you?" asked Morgan. "Are you a Woodsword student? Do you go to Ironsword?" "I'm not sure," said the boy. "I don't think so. I'm… new." "New in what way?" asked Ash. The boy shrugged. "Just…new." "Does he look familiar?" asked Theo.

"Yes," said Harper. "He definitely evokes a memory of someone we used to know." Morgan smiled. "Let me guess. You want to experience everything this world has to offer." "That's right," said the boy, returning Morgan's smile. "But monsters come out at night. I could use some allies. Maybe…maybe some friends." He took a hesitant step forward. "I don't know why. But I feel like I can trust you all." "You can trust us," promised Ash. "That's right," said Morgan. "You want to learn all about Minecraft? Well…" Morgan extended his blocky fist in greeting. "We've got a lot to show you."