Crack in the Code! (Minecraft Stonesword Saga #1)

by Nick Eliopulos

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  © 2021 Mojang AB. All Rights Reserved. Minecraft, the MINECRAFT logo and the MOJANG STUDIOS logo are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies.

  Published in the United States by Random House Children’s Books, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, 1745 Broadway, New York, NY 10019, and in Canada by Penguin Random House Canada Limited, Toronto. Random House and the colophon are registered trademarks of Penguin Random House LLC.

  rhcbooks.com

  minecraft.net

  Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data is available upon request.

  ISBN 9780593372982 (trade)

  ISBN 9780593372999 (library binding) — ebook ISBN 9780593373002

  ep_prh_5.7.0_c0_r0

  Contents

  Cover

  Copyright

  Title Page

  Meet the Players

  Prologue

  Chapter 1: The More Things Change, the More They…No. Wait. This Is Going to Be Totally Different.

  Chapter 2: Not in My Computer Lab, Butterfly…If That Is Your Real Name!

  Chapter 3: That Feeling When a Pretty Good Plan Goes Terribly, Terribly Wrong…

  Chapter 4: Don’t Build Walls Between You and Your Friends. Do Build Walls Between You and Hostile Mobs of Unknown Origin.

  Chapter 5: Join the Defensive Circle Today! You’ll Be Glad You Did.

  Chapter 6: Frazzled Teachers, Mad Scientists, Unwanted Apparel…and That’s All Before the End of Lunch!

  Chapter 7: “Metamorphosis” Is a Big Word That Means “Change.” Let’s Just Hope It’s for the Better….

  Chapter 8: Let’s Be Honest: Pineapple on Pizza Is Just Weird, Even If It Provides a Balance Between Sweet and Savory.

  Chapter 9: A Revelation! A Eureka Moment! A Change of Heart! All Like Butterflies Taking Flight!

  Chapter 10: Pumpkins! They’re What All the Monster Hunters Are Wearing This Season.

  Chapter 11: The Endermonster Is What? You’re Pulling My Stone Leg!

  Chapter 12: Aside from the Strands of Twisted Code and an Ominous Warning of Impending Doom, This Is a Totally Happy Ending!

  About Minecraft

  About the Authors

  Theo Grayson stood alone in the Overworld.

  He wasn’t supposed to be here by himself. It was one of his friends’ most important rules. Nobody went into Minecraft alone.

  There were monsters out there, after all. And he and his friends had souped-up goggles that let them actually enter the game for real. And that meant the monsters, the danger—and the unknown—were real.

  But today, curiosity had its hooks in him. He was here looking for something. Something new. Something…unusual.

  Theo saw all the most common mobs of Minecraft. He saw chickens and sheep. He saw pigs and cows.

  And then he saw something colorful out of the corner of his eye.

  Theo’s digital avatar didn’t have a heartbeat, but he felt like his pulse was racing. His avatar didn’t have lungs, but he felt like he was holding his breath. He spun around and looked to the sky.

  There, fluttering in the air, was a single butterfly.

  “I’ve done it,” Theo said out loud, even though he was alone. “I’ve created a new mob!”

  He hoped his friends would be impressed. He hoped they wouldn’t be mad—even though he had broken a second rule that day.

  He wasn’t supposed to mess with the code.

  But that was one rule he didn’t agree with.

  He was just doing a little modding.

  What was the worst that could happen?

  Theo arrived early at Woodsword Middle School. For once, he was eager to start the day.

  After all, he had news to share with his friends. Big news.

  Big Minecraft-related news.

  Theo was the newest member of an unofficial Minecraft club. On most days, the club met after school in Woodsword’s computer lab, where they played Minecraft together on a shared server.

  But Theo couldn’t wait until after school. He needed to find his friends right away.

  He hurried to the large oak tree where the group sometimes gathered before school. Today, only one figure stood beneath the tree. She wore a fedora and dark sunglasses. Despite the disguise, Theo recognized Jodi Mercado immediately.

  “Hi, Jodi,” he said. “Do you have a minute?”

  “Jodi? Who’s Jodi?” said Jodi. “I’m Agent J. I don’t know any Jodi!”

  “Oh,” said Theo. “My mistake.” What could he do but play along?

  After a few moments of uncomfortable silence, Agent J lowered her sunglasses and whispered, “Just kidding, it’s me. Jodi! But be cool—I’m on a deep-cover surveillance mission.”

  She leaned against the tree trunk and peered around it. Theo peeked, too but he didn’t see anything of interest. A few students had gathered on the lawn. Safety patrols watched over the crosswalk. The public library stood across the street.

  “What are we looking at, uh, Agent J?” Theo asked.

  “Doc took a bunch of equipment into the library precisely”—Jodi glanced her watch—“four minutes and forty-two seconds ago. High-tech equipment.”

  “Is that unusual?” Theo asked. “Doc” was Dr. Culpepper, their science teacher. Theo knew she liked to tinker with technology…and that her tinkering often caused trouble. Her inventions and upgrades had a way of turning out not quite the way she planned.

  “Everything Doc does is unusual,” Jodi answered. “Maybe moving that equipment is harmless. Maybe it’s nothing!”

  “Yeah,” said Theo. “You’re probably—”

  “Then again, maybe she’s replacing the local librarians with cyborgs. Once the cyborgs are in charge of the library, they’ll control all the information. And once they control the information, they’ll control the world. Just think of the overdue fees they’ll charge, Theo! Those fees will be astronomical!”

  “Sure,” Theo said. “Maybe that’s it. Or maybe she’s just donating old equipment. Or upgrading their air-conditioning. Or—”

  “Hold that thought!” said Jodi, interrupting him. “There she is.”

  Theo looked again, and he saw that Jodi was right. Doc was in the crosswalk, heading back onto school property.

  “I need to follow her. Sorry, Theo.”

  Theo shrugged. “Do what you have to do. But where’s everybody else?”

  “Dunno,” said Jodi as she ducked behind a nearby bush. “I think Po is in the gym this morning. Check there!”

  * * *

  Po Chen was in the gymnasium, just like Jodi had said. As Theo watched, Po sped across the basketball court, turned his wheelchair on a dime, lined up a shot, and sent the ball sailing toward the basket. Swish! It was nothing but net.

  Theo didn’t know much about sports, but it was easy to see why Po was a star player. Woodsword’s basketball team was a mixed ability team, which meant that every player used a wheelchair during games, even though some of them didn’t use wheelchairs in everyday life. It took a lot of practice—and somehow Po still had time for other extracurriculars, too. Including the after-school Minecraft club.

  Theo
thought that waking up early to practice sports before school sounded like way too much work. He could barely get out of bed in time for breakfast. He yawned and almost got hit by a stray basketball!

  “Sorry, Theo!” said Po as he wheeled to the edge of the court. “That was a terrible pass. I almost turned basketball into dodgeball!”

  “No problem,” said Theo. He retrieved the ball from beneath the bleachers. “I wanted to talk to you anyway,” he said, handing Po the ball and lowering his voice. “About Minecraft, and—the Evoker King.”

  Po’s jaw dropped. That had gotten his attention.

  “Hurry up, Po!” said a teammate.

  “Get back here!” said another. “You obviously need the practice.”

  “Ooh, burn!” said Po, smiling. “I’ll show you who needs practice!” He turned back to Theo. “Sorry, man. Can it wait?”

  “Sure,” said Theo, frowning a little. “Do you know where the others are?”

  “I know Harper had something to do in the science lab. Look for her there!”

  * * *

  Harper Houston was right in the middle of an extra-credit experiment. That was how she liked to use her morning time. With a pipette, she dripped liquid into a beaker, drop by drop. She spied Theo out of the corner of her eye.

  “Sorry, Theo,” said Harper. “I can’t talk right this second. If I lose my concentration here even a little, the results could be…”

  “Explosive?” Theo asked with a little too much enthusiasm. His favorite science projects involved rockets and volcanos and soda geysers.

  “Well, no,” said Harper. “I’m not working on anything dangerous. But if I get the measurements wrong, it could make this whole wing of the school smell like skunk! And nobody needs that right now.”

  Theo took a step back. “You’ve convinced me,” he said. “I definitely won’t distract you…with my news about the artificial intelligence who’s been living in our Minecraft game.”

  Harper’s eyes went wide behind her protective goggles. “Theo, you rascal! If anything can distract me, it’s that. And you know it!”

  He did know it. Harper was one of the smartest people Theo knew…and one of the most curious. She idolized Doc, loved science, and cared deeply about conservation and ecology.

  She also had a great mind for Minecraft. Harper seemed to have every crafting formula and potion recipe committed to memory. Of course she would be interested in news about the artificial intelligence they called the Evoker King.

  But Theo really didn’t want to be responsible for stinking up the school first thing in the morning.

  “Sorry, sorry,” he said, grinning. “I’ll fill you in later. I’m going to try to find Morgan before the bell rings.”

  “Check the cafetorium,” Harper said. “I think he had studying to do.”

  * * *

  Morgan Mercado didn’t even look up from his textbook when Theo approached his table.

  “Not now, Theo,” Morgan said. “I’m sorry, but I’ve got a test that I am not prepared for.”

  “No problem,” Theo said. But he couldn’t keep the disappointment out of his voice. This was not how he’d imagined the morning going. How were all of his friends this busy so early in the day?

  Morgan seemed to realize Theo was hurt. He sighed and looked up from his book. “Is it something important?”

  “Sort of,” Theo said. “It’s about the Evoker King, but I can tell you later.”

  Morgan slammed his book shut and leaned forward. “Why didn’t you say so in the first place?” he asked.

  Theo grinned. He should have realized: Morgan always had time for Minecraft.

  “I’ve been studying the code,” Theo said. “And learning everything I can about mods. You know what those are, right?”

  “Sort of,” Morgan said. “I know ‘mod’ is short for ‘modification,’ and ‘modification’ means ‘change.’ That’s what you call it when someone makes changes to a game’s code.”

  “You’re mostly right,” said Theo. “Only, a mod doesn’t make changes to the actual game code. It’s more like it puts extra code on top of the game code. Minecraft mods will do things like create new blocks or weapons or gems. They don’t technically mess with how the game works. But they can make the game different in little ways.”

  Morgan nodded. The Minecraft version that he and his friends had been playing was more than a little different. It was uniquely weird. That was because Doc had used the school computers to experiment with virtual reality and artificial intelligence. So when Theo, Morgan, and the others played Minecraft…they played from inside the game. Their minds were transported to a living, breathing world that was wondrous…but it also gave Survival Mode a totally new meaning!

  And they weren’t alone in that world—artificial intelligence lived inside the game. He called himself the Evoker King. He had been their enemy, then their friend…and now he was in need of a rescue.

  For reasons none of them understood, the Evoker King had turned to stone. He was a lifeless statue: Unmoving. Unfeeling. Unthinking.

  It was a problem that Theo was determined to solve.

  “Have you been trying to help the Evoker King?” Morgan asked. “Is that why you’re learning about mods?”

  “Yeah, exactly.” Theo nodded. “Mods are how Doc affected the game. That means it’s a mod that gave the Evoker King access to Minecraft in the first place. So I’ve been making my own mods. I’ve been practicing. Experimenting. So that I can figure out what went wrong with the Evoker King. So that I can fix him!”

  He waited for Morgan to crack a smile. But Morgan looked deeply serious. “I don’t know if this is a good idea, Theo,” he said at last. “Messing with that stuff sounds risky. What if you make the problem worse?”

  Theo wasn’t sure what to say to that. He had thought Morgan would be thrilled with his idea.

  “We should talk about this later,” Morgan said. “I really do have to study.”

  “Okay,” said Theo.

  “And, Theo,” said Morgan. “Don’t go messing with anything before we talk. Don’t make any new mods, and don’t make any changes to old ones. Okay? This should be a team discussion.”

  “Yeah. Right,” said Theo. “Of course. Team discussion.”

  But Theo knew it was too late for that. He’d created several mods already. And he’d started tinkering with Doc’s code. He had done it without telling anybody what he was doing. Morgan wasn’t going to be happy.

  Theo decided not to say anything more. He hoped his blushing didn’t give him away. But luckily, Morgan had already turned back to his book.

  * * *

  Later in the day, Theo met up with the others. They gathered outside the computer lab, as they did most days.

  After school was their time. To play Minecraft together. To share adventures and build great things.

  But this was not a day like any other.

  Morgan threw open the doors of the computer lab…and they all gasped at what they saw.

  “What in the world happened?!” said Po.

  In unison, Harper and Jodi said, “The computers…”

  “They’re gone!” Theo finished.

  Morgan was stunned. He couldn’t speak. He couldn’t move. He felt like his brain couldn’t process what his eyes were seeing.

  The computer lab was his favorite place. It was like a clubhouse—the one spot where he could forget about homework and chores and just spend time with his friends, gaming, laughing, sharing Minecraft adventures.

  And now the computer lab was gone—replaced by some sort of indoor jungle. Bright green leaves were everywhere, and the air was warm and wet. A rain forest might as well have sprouted up in the middle of the classroom!

  Were they in the wrong room? Were they at the wrong school? Were they on the wrong planet? Ju
st what was going on here?

  “Where did all these plants come from?” asked Jodi. She craned her neck for a better look and twirled in a slow circle.

  “Well, they’re potted plants,” said Harper. She pushed a leaf aside for a better view. “They didn’t just grow out of the ground. So someone brought them here.”

  “Did they bring the cocoons, too?” asked Po.

  “Cocoons?” echoed Jodi. “Where?”

  Po wheeled over to one of the plants and pointed out a small cocoon. Then another, and another. Now that Morgan knew what to look for, he saw them everywhere! They were hanging from leaves and light fixtures and windowsills.

  “They’re butterfly cocoons,” said Harper. “From several different species, I think.”

  “This has to be Doc’s latest mad-science experiment!” said Jodi.

  “I knew we would be learning about butterflies in class this week,” said Theo. “But this is overkill, even for Doc.” Fascinated, he stuck out a finger to poke a cocoon.

  “Careful!” said Harper. “They’re fragile.”

  Theo poked the cocoon anyway. “You know, there are thousands of species of moths and butterflies in the world. I don’t think there’d be so many if they were that delicate.”

  Normally, Morgan would tell Theo to cut it out. But he was still reeling with shock. “I don’t understand this at all,” he said. He dropped to a sitting position, right on the ground, and put his head in his hands. “Where did all the computers go?”