Chapter 5

5 A hologram of a fox hovered over the middle of the board. "This one is easy!" said Violet. "Foxes are predators. They hunt other animals. It must be a consumer." Deepak and Pablo nodded. Violet reached for the fox. "Be careful!" Deepak shouted. Pablo laughed. ".Qué pasa? It's a hologram, remember?" Deepak blushed with embarrassment. Violet pulled Pablo close and whispered, "Why are you being so mean?"

"I'm not," Pablo replied. He shook her off. As he walked toward the fox, it growled. "Whoa!" Pablo cried. Violet and Deepak laughed quietly. "Don't worry, Pablo!" said Dr. Crisp "It can't hurt you!" She signed the Maker's honor. Pablo took a deep breath and grabbed the fox. BIZZAP! He put it in the consumer square. The square flashed purple. RING, DING, DONG! "One down, three to go!" shouted Dr. Crisp. "Hurry, hurry, Makers! Don't be too slow!" A group of mushrooms appeared.

"Those must be producers!" said Pablo. "I don't know," said Violet. She explained that mushrooms grew in the compost pile in her backyard. "My dad says the mushrooms help break down the compost." "I think they're decomposers," suggested Deepak. Violet agreed. "But mushrooms are plants. And plants are producers." Pablo tapped his foot impatiently.

"Actually, mushrooms are a kind of fungus," said Deepak quietly. "I learned about them at science camp over the summer." But Pablo wouldn't give in. "Come on, Pablo. It's two against one. We can't move them unless you agree with us," Violet said. Pablo shrugged. Violet tried to grab the hologram. Her hands passed right through the bunch of mushrooms. Pablo checked his watch. One hundred Maker Minutes left. "Fine," he mumbled. "Mushrooms are decomposers."

Violet reached for the mushrooms. This time she could pick them up. RING, DING, DONG! A fern plant appeared on the game board. That was easy. "Producer!" the trio yelled out. Deepak set the fern in the producer square.

Then a hologram of a crow popped up. There was only one square left. "Crows are scavengers?" Pablo asked aloud. "I once saw a bunch of crows eating roadkill," added Violet. "It was pretty gross." RING, DING, DONG! The whole board game started flashing purple. "Bada, bam, boom!" said Dr. Crisp as she played an imaginary drum set. "You've mastered the first level, Makers!" She hopped up on the board and gave everyone high fives with her invisible drumstick. Violet and Deepak hugged. Pablo was happy they beat the level, too. But for some reason, he didn't really feel like celebrating. "Okay, Makers, let's see where the Maze sends us next!" said Dr. Crisp.